Start to Finish
by Lamanth
Summary: Sometimes in life you have to see things right through to the bitter end, even if you wish you didn't.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any of its characters, merchandise, TV rights, ect… (I think you get the point.)

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Summery 

Sometimes in life you have to see things right through to the bitter end, even if you wish you didn't. (Sasuke/Ino)

Like all of my work this is just something that happened to float through the empty void inside my head. Like it or hate it please R and R as honest opinions are always welcomed, as are random acts of worship.

Lamb: Well here it is at last, there were times when I thought this would never be more than a poll on my profile page. (There's another one up there so please vote)

**Muse:** You and chapters equals an even worse idea than you and the rest of the dross you insist on infesting this section with.

_Dedi:_ Sad thing is he's probably right. This story is dedicated to **Iluvbeyblade**, because without her nagging and prodding this project would never have got off the ground. So, **Iluvbeyblade,** this is for you.

Lamb: Also I would like to say a big thank you to my beta reader, **Iluvbeyblade**.

M**use: **On with the fic!

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_Give me time to reason, give me time to think it through,  
Passing through the season, where I cheated you,  
I will always have a cross to wear,  
But the bolt reminds me I was there,  
So give me strength, to face this test of mine,  
If only I could turn back time,  
If only I had saved what I still had,_

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**From Start to Finish**

What had gone before.

Against the orders of the Third Hokage, at the age of fourteen Uchiha Itachi was secretly ordered by the Konohagakure Council to wipe out the rest of his clan. The Uchiha clan were planning to overthrow The Hidden Leaf Village and many saw this drastic step as the only way to avert another war. Reluctantly he agreed, seeking out a third party to help him complete his task before fleeing to a group known as the Akatsuki. Here he acted as a spy, hoping, even though distanced from it to protect the village that he continued to love. For years he waited, hoping that in the end he would die at the hands of his beloved baby brother, the only family member who had been allowed to live.

Four years later, at the age of twelve, Uchiha Sasuke turned traitor and left the hidden ninja village of Konohagakure no Sato to seek out one Lord Orochimaru; the man who had given him the curse seal of heaven during the chuunin exam. He left looking for the power that would enable him to kill his older brother and avenge the slaughter of his clan. For three years he worked tirelessly towards achieving this goal, yet always remaining aware of the hidden agenda of his mentor.

Lord Orochimaru was one of the three legendary Sannin, but a lust and desire for power ran through his blood like a black plague. He cared nothing for any person save himself, believing in the sanctity of no life except for his own. He had only two aims in his life, to collect knowledge of all jutsu and to gain immortality.

To this end he trained the younger Uchiha, intending that when the time was right to take the boy's body and use it as a vessel for his soul. And in doing so he planed to gain access to the Kekkei Genkai of the Uchiha clan. The blood line limit of the Sharingan.

When he considered the time right, Orochimaru began preparations to take over the body of the Uchiha, unaware that his student had been aware of his intentions from the very beginning. A confrontation ensued but it would turn out that the student had far surpassed the master.

The Village Hidden in the Sound was left devastated and beyond repair. It had been created by the Sannin and failed to function after his death. Swiftly it fell apart, its shinobi scattering to the four concerns of the earth, seeking to carve out knew lives and forget past ones. Accompanied by a chosen few and armed with the knowledge and power of three years of training, Uchiha Sasuke once again set off in search of the brother he had vowed to kill.

For almost a year the small band travelled, following up any lead they found. Endlessly searching for the older brother of their leader. They discovered much in that time; news even reached Sasuke of the home he had long since abandoned. For weeks after these crumbs of information came to him, he would be tormented by half-formed dreams of the people he had left behind.

Also in this time, he and his group, Team Snake, would have several run-ins with various members of the Akatsuki, the organisation with which Itachi had aligned himself. One of these encounters resulted in the death of the Akatsuki member Deidara, a missing-nin from Iwagakure. He also learned of the deaths of several other members of the organisation, all at the hands of shinobi from The Leaf.

It was not long after this that Sasuke finally found and confronted his brother. The fight the followed was long and drawn out and bitterly hard fought. During the battle Itachi revealed some of the truth of what had happened the night of the Uchiha massacre. He told his younger brother of his accomplice, revealing his identity as that of Uchiha Madara, though he continued to act as if he had murdered their family for his own reasons.

During the fight Itachi removed the curse seal from Sasuke, leaving him defenceless, yet he survived, as before his brother could take his life Itachi himself collapsed, finally falling to a secret illness that had been slowly killing him for many years. The elder Uchiha died with a smile upon his lips.

Any sense of satisfaction that may have come with his brother's passing was quickly dispelled when Uchiha Madara, the uncle who had helped Itachi complete his mission on that fateful night, revealed the whole truth to Sasuke.

He spoke of how the massacre had been ordered by the then counsel of Konoha and how Itachi had come to him looking for help. It was revealed that Itachi had told his uncle that he would allow him to help him take the lives of their family if in return he swore never to attack The Hidden Leaf Village which was what he had been planning to do before he was approached by his nephew. Further still, he said how Itachi had deliberately drawn out their fight hoping to get a chance to remove the curse seal and there by remove the last hold that Orochimaru had on him.

Almost cruelly Madara revealed that everything Itachi had done was because of the love he bore for his village and for his baby brother.

Distraught and confused, Sasuke left to meet up once more with Team Snake who during this time had been engaged in combat with Hoshigaki Kisame the partner of his now dead brother. The missing-nin from Kirigakure, who was also one of the Seven Ninja Swordmen of the Mist, died at the hands of Team Snake before the team and its returned leader disappeared.

In the aftermath of the hollow revenge of Uchiha Sasuke, the Akatsuki was left in disarray and disorder. With their ranks heavily depleted and the village in which the dwelt in chaos, they were an easy target for their many enemies. Amegakure no Sato, The Village Hidden in the Rain was poised on the brink of civil war, threatening to rip itself apart even as the Akatsuki tried to remain in control.

In a last ditch attempt to forestall an attack, Pein, once known as Nagato, the leader of the Akatsuki as well as that of the Hidden Rain Village sought to align himself with the younger Uchiha. Seeking to use his power to bolster his own and once more set himself and his organisation up as a force to be reckoned with. But still racked with grief and guilt, Sasuke refused the invitation and, accompanied by his faithful followers, vanished, leaving the Akatsuki to await their fate.

Within twelve months a war raged between the Akatsuki and the combined forces of two ninja villages, The Sand and The Leaf. Though backed by the Rain Village they were still greatly out numbered and if it had come down to an all out battle they would have been easily overwhelmed. But many a shinobi was lost in small confrontations.

The Akatsuki though reduced in number were still all highly skilled ninja in their own right, they had attained the states of S-ranked criminals for a reason and took the lives of many from Sunagakure and Konohagakure before they were brought to an end.

It took close on two years and many hundreds of lives before the last surviving member, Tobi aka Uchiha Madara, was finally eliminated. In the wake of the war two villages were left almost on the brink of destruction, but under the guidance of their young but determined leaders slowly began to rebuild. Peace, a dream that had long seemed out of reach was suddenly a very real possibility and no one was prepared to let it slip away yet again.

Yet the road to peace was not an easy one. Though the Akatsuki had fallen, like The Sound years before, there remained those who believed in the defunct organisation and what it had represented. These subversive groups sort to undermine the alliance that had formed between the two hidden villages. More lives were forfeited, more lives ripped apart, before these seekers after destruction were wiped from the face of the earth. Only then could an attempt at peace really be made.

It was at this point, after a silence of almost four years that rumours began to surface here and there that Uchiha Sasuke had once again been sighted. There was never anything to back up these claims and for nearly a year tales were spouted that he had been seen here or there, always alone and never staying in one place more than a day or so. For close on twelve months these stories made the rounds and then something began to change. The sightings stopped being random and instead seemed to start to make a pattern or possibly a path.

A path that was leading back to where everything had started; a path to Konohagakure.

XXXXXXXXXX

They were close now; all three members of the team could sense it. It was nothing tangible, nothing they could put a name to, but it hung in the air like a scent that had almost completely faded. You couldn't be sure if it had ever really been there but somehow you just knew that it had.

"You can come out, I know you're there." The voice sounded bored and as if it was coming from some distance, but it was easy to locate the direction and it was obvious the speaker was making no move to flee.

Looks were exchanged, hand signals made. A male, whose long dark hair fell down his back like a mane indicated that as far as he could see their query was alone. The prominent veins around his opalescent eyes were a testament to just how much he could see; you didn't live long if you doubted what the Byakugan could see. The second male, his golden eyes like those of a predator hidden behind shades, signed that as far as he too could sense the speaker was alone.

The team leader, a dark haired female several years older than her team-mates, let her eyes travel over the faces of her team before coming to rest on the trio of nin-dogs that flanked her. They were posed, every muscle tensed in preparation for fight or flight, their eyes were glowing like embers in a fire. They were tense and alert, and due to the strong bond between the dogs and their mistress were also edgy, but none of them seemed to sense the preciseness of anyone apart from her team and the speaker.

With a slight nod of her head as the only indication Inuzuka Hana began slowly to make her way towards the place that the voice had originated from. Her team, both human and canine, was following swiftly behind her. They moved with all the noise of shadows though the forest, the sliver of moon their only illumination.

At the edge of a clearing they halted, for, standing in the centre of that clearing, looking for all the world as if he had simply stopped to enjoy the view, was the missing-nin Uchiha Sasuke.

He knew they were there, just out of his sight, and even though every instinct in him screamed out for him to use the Sharingan so that he might see where they were he resisted. He hadn't come to fight, not even to talk, but to just give himself up so that he might go home. But he knew that with even the slightest gesture on his part that could be read as hostile they would take him down. And probably enjoy doing so.

"I'm alone and I haven't come to fight." His eyes flicked from shadow to shadow, trying in vain to spot the slightest movement in the dark.

"If you haven't come to fight," a female voice that could only be described as a growl asked, "then what have you come for, traitor?"

And suddenly there they were. What he had thought part of a bush became a head, a tree branch was an arm. From the darkness, they seemed to materialise before his eyes. The two males he could name as Aburame Shino and Hyuuga Neji. The female was unknown to him, but her elongated canines and the distinctive fang like crimson tattoos on her checks marked her as one of the Inuzuka clan. But if she was a dog-nin then...

The low growl behind him answered the question before he could even finish thinking it and the slow, lazy smile that spread over the woman's face only confirmed his assumption. The Uchiha chanced a glance over his shoulder and saw three large dogs, all heavily muscled and sharp fanged, arrayed behind him. They quivered with anticipation, a feral light gleaming in their eyes and he could see how much they wanted to leap at him.

"They won't attack you... yet." Again the same smile twisted her lips. "And so I ask you again, traitor, why are you here?"

It was as he had suspected it was only the control she had over the three large dogs that was keeping them rooted to the ground. And there was no telling how long her control would last, or more accurately, how long she would let her control last.

"Surrender." He said it quickly, far more quickly than he had intended, for he had felt a soft prickle on the back of his right hand and looked down to find several Kikai beetles crawling over his skin. "I've come to surrender. I want to turn myself over to the Hokage and the Konoha Council."

In his mind he had gone over many times the reaction his words would cause. He had imagined just about everything possible depending on who he pictured making the statement to, but in all his time of thinking and wondering he had never once pictured the reaction that the Inuzuka had. She threw beck her head and howled with laughter. It was a cold, harsh sound a counterpoint to the growls from behind his back which only intensified with the actions of the dogs' mistress.

"Did you really think it would be that easy?" The new voice, though deeper, was just as it had been all those years before and turning his head Sasuke's eyes locked with the pulsing pearl like gaze. "That you could just say you were sorry and that you would be welcomed back with open arms? You're not the golden boy you once were; now you're a traitor and a missing-nin which means..."

He left the end of the sentence hanging unsaid in the air only to have his team leader complete it for him. "Which means surrender or not, we could kill you here and now and no one would so much as bat an eyelid."

"But you won't." He had meant it as a statement, but the looks on the faces of the three shinobi that stood before him as well as the continued growling from his back made doubts surface in his mind.

"Are you sure?" And in spite of how far he had come, all the things he had seen and done, there was still something in the very harmonics of the voice of Aburame Shino that made him feel as if someone had just walked over his grave.

He wasn't sure, the one thing he had left out of his calculations was just how much he had hurt the ninja of The Leaf when he had left. Like ripples in a pond the pain he had caused had spread throughout the village. Through his friends, through the Rookie Nine, or the Konoha Twelve as they had become, it had spread but had moved beyond them into their families and clans. Like a poison it had moved through the very life blood of the village.

The other thing he had not counted on was just how long his one time friends would be able to hold a grudge. Instinct won out, his eyes switched from onyx to crimson and in that instant his world exploded. Punches and kicks, bites and scratches, as the three leaf shinobi and the canine companions attacked.

XXXXXXXXXX

Three weeks later the dark haired male awoke in a secured room in Konohagakure's hospital. A blurred image of black, gold and orange resolved itself into one Uzumaki Naruto, the Sixth Hokage, who promptly hit him hard around the head before storming out of the room calling loudly for a medic.

Almost ten years since he had left, Uchiha Sasuke had finally returned to the village of his birth.

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Lamb: So prologues go this one sort of got away from me and yes, I know there was not a hint of Ino, but this was just to fill in the back ground, the story so far as it were. But I promise she'll be playing a main roll from now on.

**Muse:** Promises, promises. And another promise is that we will try and update on the first of the month. The thinking being if we set a deadline Lamb will having to get her ass in gear and write.

_Dedi:_ We can but live in hope and, also, if the need arises prod Lamb with a sharp stick. Or try appealing to her ego by offering up reviews, a shameless plug but at least we know that.

Please R and R I'd love to know what you thought.

Big love and inspiration

Lamanth


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any of its characters, merchandise, TV rights, ect… (I think you get the point.)

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Summery 

Sometimes in life you have to see things right through to the bitter end, even if you wish you didn't. (Sasuke/Ino)

Like all of my work this is just something that happened to float through the empty void inside my head. Like it or hate it please R and R as honest opinions are always welcomed, as are random acts of worship.

Lamb: Maybe giving myself a deadline really works because here, as promised, is the second chapter. And also it means that Ino is now here.

**Muse:** Thank you to **ino95,** _kljjlkjlkj,_ **WolfFlowerz,** _via-loves-Tyson,_ **Yoruichi 'Ino',** and _kiwi4m4,_ who all reviewed that last chapter.

_Dedi:_ This chapter is dedicated to **Yoruichi 'Ino'**

Lamb: As always sorry for any bad spelling and if you feel the need to throw things at me please wait until I've hidden behind the sofa kay!

M**use: **On with the fic!

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_I've felt like this somewhere before,  
I've felt the warm hand turn cold,  
Yes I've been down that road before,  
I've walked along this road somewhere,  
I learned a lot then and there,  
I know a smile can turn into a frown,  
I've been down that road before,_

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**Start to Finish**

If she were honest with herself, then Yamanaka Ino would admit that this was just about the last place that she wanted to be. Just about everybody else had already stated that this was somewhere that they didn't want the twenty-two-year-old jounin to be. Her mentor and, she liked to think also her friend, Morino Ibiki had even entered into a full on screaming match with the, still by most standards, newly appointed Sixth Hokage, which was completely out of character for her normally in control leader. He was that opposed to the situation which somehow they had all ended up in.

The scared head of Konoha's ANBU Torture and Interrogation Force had raged at the blond male who had been equally forceful. Ibiki was adamant that this was not something that should be asked of his top pupil. It was not that she was not capable, far from it in fact and he would deal severely with anyone who said otherwise. It was simply that this was not something she should be subjected to. She was an interrogator; Ino was the one who was meant to inflict torture it was not meant to be inflicted upon her.

Uzumaki Naruto had not been happy about the situation either, but as he stated repeatedly in the face of ANBU head's argument, they had run out of options. They had tried everything possible to brake the man sitting in one of the most highly guard rooms within the Torture and Interrogation Force building. Physical torture had proved useless, as had that of the emotional variety. Seduction had been a none starter, the male in question simply sneering with disdain at the two kunoichi who had tired. Even Ibiki himself had failed; he who could attack a person's mind like no one else, using that skill to brake even the strongest of wills.

Except for one.

Flash Back

"We've run out of options and the Hokage seems to think that you are the only choice we have left..." Morino Ibiki paused and tuned to look at his apprentice and felt his blood pressure start to rise and his control on his temper start to slip. "Brat! Will you stop eating and pay attention!"

"I am paying attention!" The blonde snarled and spraying cookie crumbs over the desk in the posses, which only caused Ibiki to glare still harder at her. "Why the hell d'you think I'm eating! Believe it or not I do not live on chocolate chip cookies."

The scared shinobi looked from Ino to the half eaten pack of cookies which had spilled still more crumbs over his desk, opened his mouth to yell at her, looked back to her face and closed it once more. She was sitting so rigidly in the chair; her eyes were wide and starring as she did a good impression of squirrel nibbling at a nut with her latest cookie.

"Fine, fine. But can you at least look as if you're taking this seriously." Ino shot him a furious look, which would have been more intimidating if her jaws hadn't been working furiously on the biscuit. And she'd some how managed to get chocolate onto one of her cheeks. "At the moment you look like a kid on an academy outing."

"I am taking this seriously and you know that. Or is it that you don't think I'm up to the task!" Ibiki watched as the girl started to push herself out of her seat and recognised the classic sighs of 'Ino in a rage' or at least attempting to be in a rage. But he knew her better than she knew herself and could tell that the blonde was trying to use her anger to mask her fear of the task she was being faced with.

"Don't be ridiculous, I trained you after all." The hand he placed to her shoulder was both comforting and reassuring and Ino allowed herself to be pushed back down on the chair. "No, I know you can do this, it's just I wish you didn't have to."

"You're not the only one sensei." When Ino spoke her voice was a lot softer than the one her mentor was used to and the smile she gave him as she waved the packet of cookies at him was also lacking a certain Yamanaka like quality. "Cookie?"

End Flash Back

They had explored every avenue short of poisoning the prisoner and hoping for a death bed confession. Ibiki had been all for trying it until a testy Naruto had pointed out that it had been joke. The head interrogator had said that didn't mean it wasn't a good idea, or at least was a better one than what the blond Hokage was intending to do. It was in the nature of snakes, he argued, to attack any small furry mammal they came across and he didn't want Ino to become the next victim.

"_You're calling Ino a mouse, Ibiki-san?"_

"_No, of course not. But my point –"_

"_Is valid. It's just that sometimes that small furry mammal the snake goes for turns out not to be a mouse but a mongoose. Result, one dead snake."_

So here she now stood outside of a cell, facing a door on the other side of which was the person she hoped she would never have to see again unless it was to look down on his dead body. Ibiki was standing behind Ino, and flanking him were two special jounin whose job was simply not to let anyone in or out of that cell, unless they had the highest possible clearance.

"Ino," The disfigured man said gruffly. "We can wait if you need more time to prepare yourself… I know you had an emotional attachment to – "

"I'm fine, Ibiki-san." Ino said, knowing that he must indeed be very concerned about her if he was going as far as using her given name. Normally he referred to her either as Yamanaka or more commonly as Brat. "After all this is what I've been trained for."

She flashed him a bright smile, but her mentor saw the tightness that lingered around her eyes and the tension in her every limb. The Yamanaka might be an accomplished liar; he had helped school her after all, but that also meant that he had known her for too many years to be fooled. He had been the first one to notice the girl's potential, and it had only been after his constant and insistent demands that he had been allowed to draft Ino into ANBU black ops. From that moment on he had trained and coached her personally, pushing her relentlessly to be all that she could be. The end result had made all the effort worthwhile, for she was by far the best he had ever taught, but looking at her now Ibiki had to ask himself if he had trained her well enough to do what was now being ask of her.

Taking a deep breath the blue eyed female pushed open the heavy, chakra effused door, and head held high walked into the cell. The sound of the locks on the door clicking into place echoed in the cool air and to Ino each one represented another lair of her emotional self being stripped away until all that was left was the woman who had earned the title of 'Konoha's number one bitch'. The interrogation room was bare except for two chairs, one of which was empty and one in which a dark haired male casually reclined.

"I knew," The traitorous snake said, something akin to a smile hovering around the corner of his mouth. "I knew if I waited long enough they'd call on you, Yamanaka."

"And I hoped if I waited long enough that I could spit on your rotting corpse." Ino said in a wistful voice before she spat out his name like it was some vile sour fruit. "Uchiha Sasuke."

XXXXXXXXXX

The Yamanaka knew why she was here and was almost curtain that the prisoner did as well. If he didn't give the answers she wanted then Ino would just go inside his head and forcible take them. Over the years she had learned how to use her clan jutsu in ways that those who remembered the child Ino, would have thought unimaginable. She could slip inside someone's mind like a shadow, read their soul like a book and slip away again without the person in question being any the wiser. Or she could tare her victim's mind apart from the inside out; snatch the information she required and leave the individual a broken, insane lunatic. Forever trapped in the confines of their broken psyche.

"Why did you do it?" Ino finally asked. "Why did you leave?"

After about half an hour of fruitless questioning she decided to just give up and ask him directly. It was the one main flaw of her character, Yamanaka Ino was not known for her patient nature. When in 'interrogator' mode she had learned to control herself… mostly. Twice she had lost it, but luckily both times the prisoner in question had broken down in the face of the blonde's demented rage and spilled the desired information on the spot. It was something about which Ibiki still liked to torment her. But they knew what she was like and if everyone else had failed she might as well just do what she did best, head on confrontation.

Sasuke let out a breath he didn't even know he had been holding and a slight smile started to play around his lips. He had begun to worry that the young woman sitting opposite really had changed, transformed into another person. But no, there was the Ino he knew the one he had come looking for. Jumping feet first into everything, a subtle as a sledgehammer, all she knew how to do was to charge at obstacles head on and blast them out of her way.

"I started thinking, that I was tired of doing things somebody else's way and it'd always be somebody else's way." If the blue eyed kunoichi was surprised that Sasuke had answered her question without hesitation then she betrayed no outward sign.

"You see it was doing things somebody else's way that left my family the way it did, dead. My brother did things somebody else's way and look what happened." Sasuke watched as his words rolled like water over the arctic blonde, and he wondered just how much she knew about the events that led up to the Uchiha massacre. Probably every sordid little detail if he had judge her correctly, Ino liked to in possession of all the facts and she was doubtless the only person alive who rushed in blindly with their eyes wide open.

"So you abandon your friends and betray your village?" There was no heat behind the words, but he could hear the way every letter sounded as if it had been dipped in acid.

"Leaving my friends and Konoha, that didn't hurt as much as I thought..." As he trailed off Ino looked up, one brow raising in a bored, silent, question. "But leaving you did."

"Mm." Had she been the same obsessive fan-girl she had been when he left, Ino would have leapt squealing from her chair and flung herself into his arms. Had she been the same girl, but she wasn't. She was now older and wiser and had seen far too much of the dark side of human nature to ever again be moved by the pretty words that came from a silver edged serpent tongue.

"You're a hard act to follow, Yamanaka." And even though he used her last name there was a definite caress to the word. "Everybody else stayed away when I warned them off, but you never did."

"Funny really," And there really was a true hint of laughter in her voice. "As it was the only thing you've ever said that was actually worth listening to."

"I remember a time when you didn't care what I said, as long as I was saying it to you." A smile flitted across Sasuke's face and for a moment Ino could again see the young boy she had once known.

But time changed people and she could see the evidence of its effects clearly before her eyes. The lines of his face contrasted with the youthfulness of his body, but they were the hollows and recesses of suffering not age, a deepening around the eyes and down the planes of his face. His skin was fair, looking almost pale under the glare of the harsh florescent light, and there was a fine scar along the ridge of his cheek and over his left eye.

There was a time when she would have looked at him though rose tinted glasses, seen the scars he bore as the marks of a hero. But now all she did was wonder absently how he had killed the person who had cut up his face. With one fast hit, his rage driving him to strike like a snake. Or had it been slow and drawn out, did he make the person suffer for the damage they had done.

"So why did you come back?" And now they were getting to it, the question that had the whole village poised on the edge of a knife. Was he a spy in their midst or had he allowed himself to be brought back because he really wanted to return.

"For many and varied reasons," He caught her eye, and smirked at the hard expression on her beautiful face. "But I am not the start of an envision force. Konoha is safe, from me at least, and on that you have my word."

"And those reasons would be…?" Ino inquired; as if she had either not heard or if she had that she didn't care about his promise.

"So you're taking my word?" Sasuke said only to have his expression darken when he looked at her impassive façade. "Or is it because you think you can just stroll into my head and find out if I'm speaking the truth or not."

"We both know, not only that I can, but if you give me the provocation that I will." Frozen icy orbs fixed with dark onyx eyes. "Now, those reasons."

"As I said, many and varied. But one of the main ones, if you're interested," He paused but she gave no reaction and simply continued to sit staring off into space. "Would have to be you."

"I'm sorry to disappoint you Uchiha," The kunoichi said, sounding anything but sorry as she rolled her extraordinary eyes at him. "But the days when Sakura and I used to fight over you are long over. If she still wants you then she's more then welcome to have you. But traitors hold no interest for me so you are going to have to do much better than that as far as reasons for your return go."

By now completely at easy Sasuke leaned back in his hard wooden chair, his arms folded behind his head and his legs stretched out in front of him. He would give the blonde all the reasons she wanted, there was no point in trying to hide anything from Konoha now anyway, and scoff though she might there had been more to what he had said than simply trying to get inside her head. None of what he had said had been a lie, yes leaving Konoha and the rest of his friends had hurt, but leaving the bubbly blonde had hurt more.

Yamanaka Ino was the girl he had never had the time or interest to get to know, which at the time had been fine. But now, years on, it made her a mystery, a riddle that he wanted to solve. She could hide what she felt so deeply beneath the surface that it was impossible to know her true reaction to anything. What you saw was what the mind walked wanted you to see, even if Sasuke hadn't already known it the short space of time he had spent in her company would've made it clear. He felt no strong emotional tie to the girl, yet, except the faint stirrings of lust. But there was just something about her that made him want to get to know her better.

Why was it that leaving her, a girl he had hardly known had hurt more than leaving the team who had almost become like a family to him? Why was it that when Sakura had clung to him he had felt violated but when it was the blonde he felt no need to get her to let go? Why was it that she, who had once declared her love of him so openly, now refused to look on him as anything other than a traitor? Ino was a puzzle that begged to be solved. Simply put she intrigued him.

"You don't believe that I'd return simply because my heart told me I had to be with you?" He said, watching intently for her reaction, though he could accurately guess what it would be. The blonde did not disappoint.

"I don't think you would have willingly put yourself through the beating Hyuuga Neji, Inuzuka Hana and Aburame Shino subjected you to for any person other than yourself." Ino dropped each name, to show the male sitting opposite her that she knew ever detail of how he had been brought back to The Hidden Leaf Village. Knew, and didn't care what they had done to him which, even though he had come willingly had resulted in a short spell in hospital.

"And you certainly would not have put yourself through it for me," The very notion made her want to laugh with derision. "Regardless of what your heart, that black and withered thing without pity, might or might not have told you."

"Like I said Yamanaka, you're a hard act to follow." Taking a deep breath Sasuke settled himself more comfortably in his seat. "But as for my _other_ reasons…"

* * *

Lamb: And Sasuke's other reason are….? Honestly I have no clue; they play no roll in the story and have no bearing on anything. So frankly I don't care and they won't be truing up in the story. Though whatever they are they're not bad but if anyone has any ideas then let me know.

**Muse:** We will again set a deadline of the 1st if next month to update, but it might be sooner if we can get it written.

Dedi: If, being the key word in that statement and as always reviews are loved and appreciated.

Please R and R I'd love to know what you thought.

Big love and inspiration

Lamanth


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any of its characters, merchandise, TV rights, ect… (I think you get the point.)

* * *

Summery 

Sometimes in life you have to see things right through to the bitter end, even if you wish you didn't. (Sasuke/Ino)

Like all of my work this is just something that happened to float through the empty void inside my head. Like it or hate it please R and R as honest opinions are always welcomed, as are random acts of worship.

Well sorry for the amazingly long delay but my net's been down since before the start of the month so I haven't been able to update, read or anything else so as you can imagine I've been a little bit testy. Also I've kicked the voices out of this story since all their bitching was getting on my nerves.

So thanks to everyone who has read, reviewed, favourited and all the rest. Here is the next chapter. Enjoy.

* * *

_I got a problem an' I don't know what to do about it,  
Even if I did, I don't know if I would quit but I doubt it,_

_I'm taken by the thought of it,  
And I know this much is true,  
Baby, you have become my addiction,  
I'm so strung out on you,_

* * *

**Start to Finish**

Ino sighed as she looked around the small two-bedroom house, painted in neutral shades of white and cream, the house that was to be her home for the next six months at least. Her stuff, packed in two cases and a rucksack, had been dumped in the first bedroom, the larger of the two, and she now lay sprawled on top of the sofa in the living room. As a child she had dreamed of finding her self in situations like this, playing house with the boy she had idolised for more years than she could count. But now that she was actually having to live through the scenario Ino was finding it left a lot to be desired and was just wishing that she could go back to her own room, in her own home.

It had been almost two weeks since she had first walked into that cell, had that first conversation with the returned traitor. And now here she was preparing to spend the short-term future living with him. If she had not been as strong as she had made herself Ino felt she could have broken down and wept at the unfairness of it all. Every time she had spoken with the Uchiha he had been just as open and up front with her as he had been that first time. But just as he had done then he had continued to hint, more and more openly, that one of the many reasons he had come back had been her. She did not want to believe it, but he was leaving her little choice.

Many different people had questioned Sasuke many times over the past twelve days, and all had come to the same conclusion that he really was telling the truth. He wasn't the start of an invasion, he had returned because he had wanted to. She hated him so much for all the pain and damage he had caused, and Ino was a good hater it was one of the things she prided herself on. No one could hold a grudge like she could and what he had done was unforgivable. But even as she loathed him, Ino could not completely blind herself to the fact that, in spite of all that he had done, some part of her continued to care for him. But to care for a traitor was almost as bad as being one in her mind and it only served to increase her hatred of him.

The thing about trust was that once it had been lost was a very hard thing to regain, and so while Sasuke had been granted his freedom it had come at a cost. He would be kept on a very short lead, and that lead was Yamanaka Ino, though she thought of herself as more of a choke chain. Her job was a simple one; it was basically to be a glorified baby-sitter so wherever the Uchiha went she would go too and vice-versa. On paper it was an assignment that anyone of jounin rank working at Konoha's ANBU Torture and Interrogation Force could have done. But in reality…

Naruto had asked her if she could do this, knowing full well what would be expected of her should anything go wrong. It was a position that felt similar to walking on a high wire, you had to keep you balance, keep control, otherwise everything would fall apart. They wanted Sasuke guarded by someone who would stop him if the need arose, but wouldn't use the slightest excuse to take him out.

The village was filled with those who would either be too soft, Haruno Sakura, or those who would be too hard, almost every other member of the original Konoha Twelve. Tenten had gone as far as to say if every Ino wanted time to herself then she, Konoha's best weapons expert, would be only too happy to take him for an hour or two. Moving targets were so much more fun to practice with she had explained.

_Almost._ The blonde sighed once more and rolled onto her stomach. Naruto, or Hokage-sama, as she was still trying, and failing, to make herself think of him, wanted to trust in his friend but knew that to blindly do so would not be a wise move. Especially for someone in a position such as his. He trusted her, knew her and knew that she was one of the few people who would be able to curb her impulse to snap Sasuke's traitorous little neck. So for the love and respect that she held for Naruto, against her better judgement, Ino had agreed to his request.

And so while everyone else seemed either to hate the last Uchiha or were at least just feigning indifference to his return, she was stuck playing watchdog.

XXXXXXXXXX

By the time she had signed the last form that would effectively release the Uchiha into her care it was well past midday and Ino felt she would die if she were confronted with one more piece of paper. The amount of red tape that had to cut through was unbelievable, and by the time she was done signing her name Ino's right hand was cramped and achy. But the worst thing in her opinion was that she was having to go through all this for a person she wouldn't, given the choice, have spat on if they were on fire.

The blonde kunoichi stepped out of the ANBU building, into the warm sunshine and stretched luxuriously like a cat. Then tensed when she felt his arms wined around her waist and his head rest lightly on her shoulder. Ino was reminded irresistibly of the time she had jumped on him at the start of the Chuunin exam; her attention then had been as welcome as his was now.

Sasuke chuckled in the back of his throat as he nuzzled the young woman's neck; he could almost feel the hatred that rolled in waves through her body. It was only her immense self-control that was keeping Ino from clawing out his eyes right then and there, and Sasuke wondered just how far he would be able to push her. Everybody had a braking point, the Yamanaka would be no exception, and it would just be a question of what he would have to do to find it.

"You've authorisation to kill me?" He knew that she had, but still wanted to hear it from her mouth. Sasuke tightened his hold on Ino's lithe body, if she would say it then the odds were that the blonde would have no problem in carrying out the order.

"Any time, for any reason." She responded, thinking that if it had been anyone else who had been holding her the embrace would be one the she could have happily enjoyed. Pity that the strong arms belonged to a slimy little snake.

"Why don't you just do it, then?" Sasuke queried softly, his chin resting on the warm support of her shoulder. "What is it they say? 'Hell hath no fury...'"

"Sasuke, Sasuke." Ino said sadly, her tone pitying as she stepped away from him and began walking away. "You were never that good.

"I never had any complaints, and I don't object to you finding out first hand if you want." The way the blonde went ridged at his casual statement told Sasuke that he'd hit a nerve. Though whether her reaction was caused by his mention of previous partners or his insinuation that she could be next in line he wasn't completely sure. "Hmm, I don't for see any long romantic walks in our future then."

"Oh no, we can have long walks. I'll just be keeping you on a very short lead." There was nothing warm or friendly about the smile that crossed Ino's face when she looked at him. Her grin was about as funny as the one that was normally seen moving very fast towards drowning men. The one that has the fin on top.

"Oh come now Yamanaka-san," Sasuke almost sighed at the loathing that flashed in her eyes when he addressed her in such an overly formal way. Ok not formal but not familiar either. "You make me feel like a wild animal."

"Trust me," She said, wondering if the innuendo had been deliberate or if she was just being over sensitive and scanning his every word for a hidden meaning. "The feeling's mutual."

"As in you'd love to indulge you wild side and rip my throat out?" He hadn't meant that to come out as a question, but even to his own ears that was how it had sounded.

"Funny, seems like maybe you do know me after all." Her tone was ice and her back to the dark haired male so she failed to see the way that, just for a moment, something the might be called pain flashed through onyx eyes.

XXXXXXXXXX

One week later found Sasuke sitting on the kitchen table eating a bowl of cereal and reflecting that as a whole he just didn't get the female sex and out of all of them Yamanaka Ino was the most hard to understand of them all. She chose that moment to enter the kitchen. Ino cast a disparaging glance at the male sitting on the tabletop clad only in a pair of black boxer shorts, moved to the unit poured her self a cup of coffee and left again without a single word. Sasuke sighed and shook his head; he just didn't know what she wanted him to do.

If anything over the few days that they had lived together, the blonde had grown more distant and aloof. No matter what he did, his actions got no response from the kunoichi except for disdain and withering sarcasm. He had tried being open and friendly, an act that had fallen flat. As had being cold and aloof and being flirtatious with her had been a none starter. In a last desperate attempt to preserve his sanity Sasuke had tried just ignoring her, but the act that had come so easily in his youth now proved to be impossible.

It was a fact that the last Uchiha found disturbing to say the least. All his life he had found it easy to shut out people, but now the blonde, who was making it clear she wanted as little to do with him as possible, was always foremost in his thoughts. As an objective onlooker he could say that the Yamanaka was one of the most ascetically pleasing kunoichi to ever come from Konohagakure. But his current situation was leading him more and more to believe that he could not really be called 'objective' with anything connected with Ino.

The worst thing was, apart from Ino's obvious dislike of him, was that he didn't understand why he was feeling the way he was or even what it was that he was feeling. It was almost as if he felt that he wouldn't ever be fully excepted back into the village until Ino excepted him. But just what he meant by 'except him' Sasuke wasn't sure. All he knew was that something like icy fire filled his gut every time those frozen blue orbs fixed on him, pure loathing glittering in their depths.

Angrily the raven-haired male slammed his empty bowl down on the table beside him, hissing when a little of the leftover milk splashed onto his hand as well was the tabletop. Sasuke swore savagely, over the years emotions had become foreign to him, known yet hard to understand. Like familiarly words written in a strange tongue. Rage and greed, he knew both of them well as he did lust, whether it was for power or a person or anything else that he had wanted. He could brake a person's spirit, use his will to completely dominate whom so ever he chose until they could not think or feel beyond what it was he wished of them.

But with the Yamanaka everything was different. Sasuke wasn't lusting after her and the idea of forcing her to bend to his will was one that he found unpalatable. Somewhere along the line his vague idea about getting into her pants had evolved into her letting him get inside her head. He wanted Ino to willingly give her self to him and was confused as to why he should want such a thing; after all she was just a girl. Just a girl like thousands of others out there so why was it so important that she accept him back into her life?

Emotional attachments were not something he wanted Sasuke told him self, he didn't need bonds with those around him. It had been one of the reasons why he had left so many years ago. During his incarceration he had been interrogated by many different people, and after that first encounter with Ino he had been open and up front with all of them about everything they had asked. Well almost everything. Most people had excepted his reasons for leaving, that he wanted power and revenge, and that Orochimaru could give him the former so that he would be able to go after the later.

Only once had he been asked for more and it was the only time that he had lied to Ino. She seemed to think that there was more to his leaving than he claimed and of course she had been right, but when he had denied it she had backed off. Though Sasuke was sure that she hadn't believed him. But he had been loathed to tell her the remainder of the truth, since the other reason he had for leaving was one that he could hardly acknowledge himself.

He had been growing too close to his team-mates. Liking and trusting them, almost, though it sacred him still to think of it, loving them. They had started to fill the hollow of emptiness that had filled him ever since his family had been taken from him. And though Sasuke had not built up close relationships with any other members of the Rookie Nine, or relationship period, he still cared about them for they too were all shinobi of The Leaf. It was the reason he had not shoved Ino off of him all those years ago when she jumped on his back as the start of the Chuunin exam. It was the reason the fear and rage had torn through him in the forest of death when he saw Sakura covered in blood sprawled on the forest floor and the blonde mind walking lying unconscious in the Nara's arms.

And it was the reason that he had run so long and so far from all of them; because he was starting to care too much. Emotions were a weakness that would not, could not, be tolerated. It was one of the first lessons that they taught in the academy after all, that a ninja need to harden their heart and not let personal feelings get in the way of doing what they knew they must. So he had run, and in doing so had severed so many of the bonds that had formed between him and those that had cared for and respected him.

And now after all those years of separation he was back, to try and rebuild that which he had so carelessly broken. But the important thing to remember, for him to remember, was that he was a Uchiha and giving up was not something he could do. It just wasn't in his nature. Even in a situation as seemingly as impossible as this. Because it seemed that he might have more success in building a stairway to heaven than ever again reconnecting with Yamanaka Ino.

* * *

Please R and R I'd love to know what you thought.

Big love and inspiration

Lamanth


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any of its characters, merchandise, TV rights, ect… (I think you get the point.)

* * *

Summery 

Sometimes in life you have to see things right through to the bitter end, even if you wish you didn't. (Sasuke/Ino)

Like all of my work this is just something that happened to float through the empty void inside my head. Like it or hate it please R and R as honest opinions are always welcomed, as are random acts of worship.

Lamb: As always sorry for any bad spelling and if you feel the need to throw things at me please wait until I've hidden behind the sofa kay!

M**use: **On with the fic!

* * *

_Cause you're hot then you're cold,  
You're yes then you're no,  
You're in then you're out,  
You're up then you're down,  
You're wrong when it's right,  
It's black and it's white,  
We fight, we break up,  
We kiss, we make up,_

* * *

**Start to Finish**

Two months in and Yamanaka Ino was finding it hard to resist the urge to abuse her power and just put her charge, and there for herself, out of his misery. The only thing that held her back was the fact that she didn't think that the Hokage, Konoha's number one Knuckle-head ninja, would agree that 'breathing too loudly' was a good enough reason to kill Uchiha Sasuke. And at the moment Naruto was not particularly well disposed to dealing with anything that was not of the utmost importance.

He had wanted the job, and though many had said he was too young, Lady Tsunade had been all for it, but as a compromise had agreed to act as an advisor to their newly appointed leader. One of Naruto's first acts, after he found out the amount of paperwork he was now expected to do, something the blonde Sannin had forgotten to mention, was to ban the consumption of alcohol within the Hokage tower. And he also threatened to outlaw gambling everywhere in Konoha. Predictable, Tsunade had hit the roof, and a privet war had been raging between the two ever since.

So between facing down his 'Granny' and having to deal with all the day to day complications that came with his office, Naruto was hardly likely to be happy to have to clean up after Ino if she went on a killing spree. But it was proving to be very tempting. She glanced sideways, her lips twisting into a thin line, as she eyed the moody profile of the pale skinned male walking at her side. Ill tempered did not even come close to describing Sasuke's disposition most of the time. The only time he seemed vaguely human was when they were training, normally under the watchful eye of Hatake Kakashi, or in the evenings when they were alone in the small house which for the time being served as their joint home.

"Hey! Ino-pig!" The loud greeting broke Ino from her musings and she looked up to see Haruno Sakura walking quickly down the street, moving in and out of the bustling crowd, towards them.

"Oh no." The blonde smirked at the whispered exclamation that came from the male at her side. "Yamanaka I swear I will do whatever you want just save me from her."

"Yeah, billboard?" Ino called back heading directly for the pink haired kunoichi, Sasuke following her, though grumbling the whole way.

"Hi Sasuke-kun," The medic-nin said smiling coyly up at him before returning her attention to her friend/rival. "What are you up to piggy?"

"Nothing much," she responded with a casual wave of her hand, Ino knew her friend was hoping to be able to tag along wherever she, and there for Sasuke, were going. "Just trying to run a few errands, but it's not easy with sulky here."

"I'm not sulky." The Uchiha muttered but it was pointless as neither female was listening to him.

"Oi! Don't call him that." Sakura said a little defensively while the dark haired male in question just scowled, he didn't like the way that Ino was acting one bit, it could only mean that he was headed for trouble.

"Well he is. But if you want to baby-sit him for a while be my guest." Ino flashed Sasuke one of her brightest and also most devious smiles. "Just make sure you don't let him out of your sight. No matter what."

There were, Sasuke knew more horrible grins than the one Ino was currently giving him. But only on the sort of grinner that was orange with black stripes, had a long tail and hung around in the Forest of Death waiting for unsuspecting victims it could grin at. And even then those malevolent felines would have had a tough time out smirking the blonde who had a looked of fiendish satisfaction plastered all over her smug little face.

"Yamanaka-" Sasuke started but got cut off.

"And what if he says he needs to use the bathroom?" Sakura queried quickly picking up on Ino's mood and since she was getting what she wanted was only too happy to go along with it. The blonde could hardly contain her laughter at the stricken look on the Uchiha's face. An expression that only darkened further when Ino next spoke.

"Then you go with him and hold his hand," And because she couldn't resist pushing Sasuke's buttons just a little more added, "Or anything else you can get a grip on."

"Yamanaka!" Sasuke's bellow of rage followed the blonde as she bounded down the street, her mood rather better then it had been at the start of the day.

XXXXXXXXXX

Some two hours later Ino wondered happily down a narrow street in the down-town district of Konoha, a bag of shopping under one arm and a neatly wrapped parcel under the other. It had been so nice to be able to shop by her self for once, to get whatever she wanted without having to listen to grunts of disapproval coming from a moody companion.

She had spent a joyous half-hour just looking though racks of cloths, trying on whatever took her fancy and had bought a beautiful oriental style dress. With a high neck and short capped sleeves, the tight dress hugged her body though it barely reached her mid-thigh. It was the colour though that had been the final deciding factor; the silk was a pale pearly lilac covered with a pattern of tiny golden flowers. The only downside, as far as Ino could see, was that she had nowhere to go in the wonderful creation and no one to ware the dress for. Well there was one option, but Sasuke was hardly deserving of that honour.

From there she had gone and visited with Yuhi Kurenai, the pretty red eyed sensei had become a sort of substitute mother to Ino. After the death of her own sensei, the blonde had found a kindred spirit in the older woman whether it was their shared grief that had brought them together Ino couldn't say. All she knew was that whatever it was she would be eternally grateful for it. They had sat talking together, sipping green tea and laughing over the antics of her departed sensei's seven-year-old son.

Ino suddenly turned left and headed up a short path until she reached a front door at which she knocked sharply. It took a few moments for the door to be pulled open a head of messy silver hair appearing in the gap and one dark lazy eye regarded the blonde with amusement. Ino stepped out of her sandals before gently, but firmly, pushing a topless and also mask-less, he'd obviously read her chakra signature, Kakashi out of her way. She entered his home and pausing only to drop her shopping in the hallway entered the living room and threw herself down upon the sofa.

"D'you think anyone would really mind if I killed him." The older man chuckled slightly at the petulant, all be it somewhat muffled, tone of his guest's voice.

"He likes you, you know." Kakashi said, slapping Ino's legs lightly so that she would roll over and move enough so that he too to settle on the sofa.

The blue-eyed kunoichi scoffed, but resettled her self so that her legs where resting over his lap. "Not after what I've just done."

At the inquiring look she smirked wickedly before quickly explaining her little act of revenge. "So I left him in Sakura's tender care and left her explicit instructions that she was not to let him out of her sight for a single moment. And even if he needed the bathroom she was to go with him and hold his hand, or any other body part that took her fancy."

"Yes, I agree that after that he might not like you," He looked in a bemused fashion at the giggling young woman. "But he's still captivated by you. I'm not talking undying love, this is Uchiha we're talking about, but I've seen the way he looks at you, Yammy."

"Kinda the way you're looking at me Kakashi… _sensei_?" Though he had never been her sensei, even if he had taught her much, it still gave her great pleasure to add the honorific to the name of the lover that was over a decade her senior. Ino smirked and pushed her foot gently into the copy-nin's groin, laughing when he hissed and grabbed the offending limb.

"Yes, just like that. But it's not just cus you're on hand eye candy Yammy." His thumb absent-mindedly stroked around the slender bone of her naked ankle "You're an attractive one blondie, that's for certain. But there isn't a kunoichi alive that isn't. It's sad but true, no one really cares what male ninja look like, but if you're female and want to make it as a ninja you have to have the looks. Why d'you think that even with her high rank Tsunade-sama puts as much effort into maintaining her looks as she does?"

"Vanity." Ino promptly responded, knowing that she was right and knowing that her piece of 'on hand eye candy' knew it too.

"Fair point. But it's more than that with you; you're inside his head Yammy, you intrigue him. But more than that, Uchiha just can't stand the fact that you don't want him any more." Kakashi suddenly released the blonde's foot and moved so that he lay on top of her, his weight supported by his hands which were either side of her head. "Or at least he thinks you don't want him."

"Meaning what, Hatake?" Ino snapped, shoving him off of her so that he rolled completely off of the sofa and landed on his back on the floor.

"Just that I know you better than he does," The silver haired jounin said mildly, making no move to get up from his recumbent position. "And while it's true that you dislike him, you'd have no qualms about letting him screw you senseless if the opportunity… arose. Would you?"

"Hmm, sometimes I think you know me too well." Ino sighed as she slipped off of the sofa and onto Kakashi, smiling sly at the look that crossed his face when she rolled her hips into his. "You're right. I think he's a traitorous cold-hearted snake and I wish he'd never born, or that he at least had the decency to have remained a missing-nin. But yes, I do find him attractive and I would, as you so delicately put it, screw him senseless as long as I could gag him first. Happy?"

"Meh," He grunted non-committally, as he ran his hands up her sides dragging up the dark purple fabric of her top as he went. "Not as happy as you're about to make me."

Under different circumstances Ino would have come out with a pithy comeback, but for too long she had been starved of physical affection, so instead of speaking simply bent down and captured Kakashi's mouth with her own. The copy-nin immediately rolled so that their positions were reversed and Ino instantly gave up on being upset with the current state of her life and wrapped her arms around his neck. He left hot trails of kisses along Ino's jaw line, and then moved himself in a more dominant position; Kakashi growled huskily and nibbled her neck affectionately. He kept coming back for a second helping of her neck, unable to resist her taste.

Ino's hands trailed down his back, her nails scraping at his flesh and leaving red lines across his skin. All pretence of tenderness was discarded, mouths feasted greedily and fingers sort to remove the clothing that hampered and hindered as swiftly as possible. Kakashi was pulling at the blonde's skirt while her hands were busy with the fastening of his pants when the harsh sound of someone knocking at the door froze them both in place. There was a moment of silence before the sound came again, louder and more insistently, and with a growl Kakashi got to his feet and headed for the door, pausing just long enough to snatch up his mask.

"Oh great." Ino mumbled, rubbing her hands over her eyes and silently bemoaning how unfair her life had become and how there was only one person to blame for all of her misfortune.

Uchiha Sasuke. Because of him and how she was forced to act as his live in nanny she had no time to do what she wanted or needed to do for her self. Getting irritably to her feet, Ino straightened out her clothing and then flung herself down onto the sofa and fought the urge to cry. And to make everything worse she hadn't had sex for over two months damn it.

"I have to go." Kakashi said in a resigned tone as he walked back into the room. "Nar… The Hokage has an important mission for me." Through mismatched eyes he watched as his blonde lover hastily fixed a smile on her face, trying to act as if she didn't mind but he could clearly see the disappointment in her eyes.

He felt his heart go out to Ino, she was stuck with a difficult and trying assignment she did not want and he could not help but feel partly responsible for her situation. Before approaching Ino, Naruto had asked his former sensei if he would be willing to take charge of his returned student. But Kakashi had taken Sasuke's betrayal very hard, and harbouring a deep dislike and distrust of the last Uchiha had said no. Looking back he wondered if he would have made the same decision if he had known that Ino would be the next to be asked.

"But this is me," Kakashi whispered, snagging Ino's arm as she made to walk past him and pulled her body tightly to his. "Fifteen minuets?"

"Time for a quickie?" She asked softly, looking up at him from under demurely lowered lashes, it was the look that both of them knew he could not resist.

"For you," He said, pulling down his mask so that he could nibble on the sensitive skin of her throat. "Always."

XXXXXXXXXX

"What's that?" Ino looked up, startled at the sudden question which was practically the first thing Sasuke had said to her in the hours since she had returned and almost had to pry him free from Sakura's clutches.

"What's what?" She asked looking up from her book and glancing around the small living room hoping to gain some insight into to what he was talking about, only to have anger leap like a flame inside of her when he spoke again.

"On your neck… a love bit?" His tone, Ino thought, was a nice mix of fury, disgust and incredulous disbelief. "So you left me in the clutches of Sakura just so you could go around acting like a common little whore!"

"Let's get one thing clear Uchiha." Ino hissed, her blood boiling with fury as she carefully placed the book she had been reading down on the coffee table. Loosing her temper now would not do her any good, better to turn the insult around so that it would end up being him whose actions were called into questioned.

"What I do and who I do it with is no concern of yours… and besides," The contempt glittered in her eyes as she stared him down. "Why would you care what a _common little whore_ was doing anyway?"

Sasuke stared dumbfounded at the doorway through which the blonde had vanished. Why did he care? And why, when she threw his own description of her back in his face, did the words make his blood feel, not only as if it was on fire, but as if it might boil right out of his veins?

* * *

Please R and R I'd love to know what you thought.

Big love and inspiration

Lamanth


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any of its characters, merchandise, TV rights, ect… (I think you get the point.)

* * *

Summery 

Sometimes in life you have to see things right through to the bitter end, even if you wish you didn't. (Sasuke/Ino)

Like all of my work this is just something that happened to float through the empty void inside my head. Like it or hate it please R and R as honest opinions are always welcomed, as are random acts of worship.

Lamb: As always sorry for any bad spelling and if you feel the need to throw things at me please wait until I've hidden behind the sofa kay!

_Dedi:_ This chapter is dedicated to **fallenmad**

M**use: **On with the fic!

* * *

_You have a way of coming easily to me,  
And when you take, you take the very best of me,  
So I start a fight cause I need to feel something,  
And you do what you want cause I'm not what you wanted,  
Oh what a shame, what a rainy ending given to a perfect day,  
Just walk away, no use defending words that you will never say,  
And now that I'm sitting here thinking it through,  
I've never been anywhere cold as you,_

* * *

**Start to Finish**

Hatake Kakashi sighed as he watched the two ninja battling it out on the training ground, that so many years ago had been the favourite of Team Seven. Looking at the pair, it would be hard to believe that they were just meant to be sparing for they looked like two long standing enemies determined to bring their enmity to a close once and for all. She had been given the authorisation to kill him should the need arise, and looking at her now it was plain to see that she would do it without a second thought if he pushed her far enough.

But in some perverse twist Ino was the one constantly pushing at the Uchiha. There was no love loss between Kakashi and his former student, but he felt a twinge of sympathy for the way the blonde temptress was treating him. It was almost as if she wanted him to snap, to lose control and breakdown completely. The silver haired jounin winced slightly as Ino performed a textbook sidekick that caught the dark eyed male full in the face, if that hadn't broken his nose then Kakashi didn't spend most of his time with his own nose buried in one of the _Icha Icha_ series.

It had been some three weeks since he and Ino had last been together, though they had managed the odd intense make-out session the last of which had left her with the impressive love bite on her shoulder which she seemed to be flaunting just to piss Sasuke off. He had been stupid to mark her up in such a way, especially as they were normally so careful, but he had been caught up in the moment and the blonde mind walker had done nothing to stop him. Not that he was really surprised, Ino might be proficient when it came to hiding her feelings from herself, but he knew that, in spite of what she said, she was falling for the Uchiha all over again.

If he was honest with himself, the copy-nin wasn't really sure how he felt about that fact. He didn't mind that the bright bubbly blonde was falling in love with someone, he just objected to who that person was; a one time traitor. Kakashi loved Ino as a friend, but that was all, their relationship could be summed up as friends with benefits. Something that was almost impossible to pull off outside of the ninja community, but it was common place amongst most shinobi even if it was not something that was advertised. Neither of them had the time or the inclination to pursue long term relationships, and if he ever felt the odd twinge of guilt Kakashi could always point out that at least this way it stopped Ino going out and picking up some random stranger.

It was safe. Neither of them was fooling themselves by trying to pretend that what they shared was something more than it really was. There had been times when he'd looked down at Ino but seen the face of another person looking back at him. Looking back at him from over the years, a face he could maybe have fallen in love with. Twice it had been her name he had called, but Ino didn't mind. She knew that it was not always her that the copy-nin was thinking of, just as he knew that at times Ino's mind strayed to another person. He could still remember the look on her face from three weeks past, the joy, and the ecstasy as a single word slipped past her lips.

"Sasuke…"

One dark eye watched impassively as Sasuke easily deflected the blonde's next attack, then side stepped her right hook and scored a direct hit on her thigh with a kunai. The mind walker threw back her head and screamed like a wild animal before rushing headlong at her opponent only to be sent crashing to the hard, sun backed, ground. Oh yes, Kakashi thought with a soft sigh, Ino was falling once more, and this time she was falling harder and faster. She was always volatile and explosive, but at the moment she was letting her feelings get the best of her which was why her ability to score a hit on Sasuke was decreasing rapidly. The girl was attacking out of blind hatred, which was never a wise thing to do. She was just lucky that the Uchiha had no interest what so ever in trying to take her life.

Except in so far as possible trying to it, and her, to bed.

"Enough!" Sasuke's frustrated yell echoed around the otherwise empty training ground. "Much more of this Yamanaka and you'll be dead."

"What!" Ino spat, and Kakashi got to his feet, preparing to separate the two of them, or at least try to, if necessary. "Are you saying you couldn't be beaten by a kunoichi?"

"I'm saying that right now you couldn't beat me. Your head's all over the place." A contemptuous sneer twisted his face as he waved his hand towards her shoulder and the red mark that adorned it. "It's probably still with whoever gave you that."

For a moment Kakashi thought that Ino was actually going to jump at Sasuke and try and claw his eyes right out of his head. Her lips drew back in a silent snarl and her eyes blazed with so much loathing that for a moment they looked almost silver. But then the moment was past and with a toss of her head the blonde had spun on her heel and started to walk off of the training ground.

"You watch him for a bit Hatake," Ino said neither stopping nor turning round. "I've got some things I need to do."

The pair of Sharingan users stared in shocked silence at the blonde's retreating form. Sasuke was more confused by what had just happened than he would care to admit. Ino wasn't the type of person to run away from anything, confrontation was what she thrived on but instead of retaliating she had simply walked away.

Kakashi, on the other hand, was not altogether surprised by the way the mind walker had reacted. His one time student had been right when he had stated that the blonde's head was all over the place, but he had been a little off in guessing where her attention had focused. The copy-nin would be prepared to stake quite a lot on the fact that Ino's mind was not on the person who had given her that love bite, him, but rather on the person she wished had given in to her, Sasuke. That, coupled with the fact that around this time of year Ino normally found it hard to keep her head straight anyway, had made it clear to him that it would only be a matter of time before she snapped.

"Come on," At the sound of his former sensei's voice, the Uchiha finally turned away from the place where Ino had vanished from sight. "There's no point hanging around here if she's gone. And if I know Yammy she won't be back for sometime so we might as well go and get something to eat."

Sasuke nodded his agreement, but could not suppress the flash of anger that ignited within him at the causal way that the lazy jounin referred to the blonde. But he was also well aware that while Kakashi's words had been friendly enough the reason he was doing this was because the blue-eyed kunoichi had asked him to do so. Trust once lost was almost impossible to regain; it was proving to be one of the most painful lessons that he had ever had to learn. When he had left all those years before he had never once stopped to think what his reception would be like if he ever dared to return to the place of his birth.

XXXXXXXXXX

Ino leapt from tree branch to tree branch, her vision blurred by tears she refused to shed. She was in the upper reaches of the forest, high above the ground and was thankful that there was no one around to see the pathetic sight that she was presenting. Since she had woken this morning she had felt the tendrils of grief starting to wind themselves around her heart but had stupidly tried to push them to the back of her mind. A course to action that had left her like this.

A blubbering wreck, scampering off into the trees like some sort of terrified rabbit. So what if it had now been three years to the day, there were some wounds that never truly healed. Some instead only got deeper with the passing of time. Loss and loneliness pierced her heart with more cruel efficiency than any blade could have done.

She wasn't thinking, her mind was a hot white fog of pain and grief and her feet were moving of their own accord but Ino was not shocked when she found her self standing in one of Konoha's three grave yards. With one trembling head she reached out and as she traced the name etched into the cool marble allowed her tears to fall. With no one to see or judge, one of the strongest kunoichi the Leaf had every seen gave in to the misery and loneliness that filled her.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Hey Sasuke! Kakashi-sensei! Come and join us!"

He's the Hokage, one of the most powerful and influential people in the five great nations and yet he still refers to Kakashi as his sensei. The thought, though a little incongruous somehow made Sasuke feel slightly better, it just went to show that some things would never change. That Naruto was still as happy-go-lucky as he'd always been, that even with his rise to power could still be found eating lunch at the Ichiraku Ramen Bar and that he was still as much of and optimist as he ever was.

But perhaps the most comforting thing of all was that Uzumaki Naruto the sixth Hokage of Konohagakure still believed in him. And that, Sasuke was quickly realising was something to be highly prised.

Hyuuga Hinata, now Uzumaki Hinata was seated beside the blond her hands resting lightly on her belly which was swollen with pregnancy. She smiled warmly at the two men, or at least she smiled at the silver haired jounin, her expression when she turned her opal eyes onto Sasuke was not exactly unfriendly but it wasn't as open as it had been when she had looked at her husbands former sensei. Guarded was probably the best way to describe it.

Sasuke had noticed it before, not just with Hinata, but with almost everyone he met. Those who were not openly distrustfully still looked at him warily and were always careful to watch what they said within his hearing. Once a traitor, not necessarily always a traitor but still someone to keep a constant watch on.

Conversation flowed easily enough and from the outside Sasuke supposed that they must have just looked like four friends sharing a meal, though Kakashi was not eating and Uchiha wondered if anyone had every managed to see under that mask. But if you knew the signs things weren't as relaxed, as they seemed. Kakashi kept his remarks to the minimum when responding to anything the Uchiha said as did Hinata, the later also reverted to her pre-teen habit of playing with her fingers when forced to converse with him for too long. Of all of them only Naruto seemed completely at ease, he too was the only one oblivious of the tension that hung around the small group.

Sasuke was just finishing off his second bowl of ramen, he'd skipped breakfast so was feeling hungrier than he normally would have done and the Ichiraku Ramen Bar still served the best that he'd ever tasted. Hinata had eaten half her order before pushing it away with an apologetic look on her face while she rubbed her stomach. Ayame had appeared as if by magic, whisked away the bowl, paused, placed it in front of Naruto and then vanished only to reappear a moment later with a cup of ginger tea which she placed in front of Hinata.

"What's that for?" Naruto said looking suspiciously at the cup as if it might suddenly jump up and bite the hand of his wife.

"It's to help with her sickness Dobe." The brunette chided the village leader as if he were a child as she began wiping down the counter top, the damp cloth smelling slightly of citrus as curved in wet arcs across the wood.

"You're ill Hinata?" The evident worry on the sixth Hokage's face was almost laughable. His chopsticks dropped from his hand clattering against the side of his partly empty bowl, his eyes widened with fear as he grabbed at Hinata's hands. Sasuke could see Kakashi grinning under his mask.

"No Naruto," The indigo haired young woman said with a bemused smile and shared a conspiratorial look with Ayame who rolled her eyes. "But I'm pregnant, remember?"

"Oh yeah… Hey where's Ino?" Naruto suddenly demanded of the company present as if he had only just realised that Sasuke's baby-sitter/guard dog was missing. Which with the presence of so much ramen he probably had.

"She needed some time to herself." Kakashi answered smoothly but in such a way that he didn't actually answer the question that had been asked.

"But she's meant to –" The blue-eyed male started, somehow managing to sound both reproachful and irritated at the same time, before he was cut off.

"Naruto…" Hinata's voice was soft as she placed her hand on the blond leaders arm, effectively getting him to focus all of his attention on her. The pointed look she gave him was filled with silent meaning, but as to what that meaning was Sasuke was clueless.

"Huh? What…? Oh!" It was almost possible to read the emotions that crossed his face as some sort of realisation struck him. "Is she all right?"

"She will be." Kakashi didn't look around as he answered. His one visible eye seemed to be fixated on the curtained doorway through which Ayame had just disappeared but in his head he was replaying the way Ino had looked when she had bolted from the training ground.

"I should have remembered." He said shaking his head in a self-deprecating manor and Sasuke almost did a double take for Naruto had sounded almost contrite.

As far as he knew his one time team-mate was not overly close to the mind walking kunoichi so what was up with the sudden show of concern about her well being. But all too quickly the answer presented it's self and it was that although they lived together he knew next to nothing about Ino's personal life. Be that her current one or what had gone on in her life in all the years since he had departed.

"You can't be expected to remember everything love, Ino-chan knows that." Hinata gave the father of her unborn child a soft smile as she reached out and squeezed his hand. "She'll understand."

"Yeah, but she shouldn't have to." And for a moment Naruto looked just like a rebellious teenager confronting the reasonable parent. He knew Hinata was right, though what she was right about Sasuke was clueless, but just because she was right didn't make it any easier for the blond to except the fact.

"Beating yourself up about this isn't going help anyone." She took a sip of her ginger tea before fixing her opalescent eyes once again on the face of her husband. "It won't help you and it won't help Ino. And it isn't going to change anything either."

"But still –" Naruto started but was cut off by the former Hyuuga, something that would have been unthinkable in their academy days.

"No _but still's_, enough is enough." Hinata's expression softened at she looked at the blond's face and the evident anxiety in his blue eyes. "But we'll go and see her later all right.

"You should listen to her you know." The masked male suddenly re-entered the conversation and also effectively managed to bring it, or at least Naruto's personal guilt trip, to an end.

The village leader looked from his former sensei to his wife saw the looks on both their faces and picked up his discarded chopsticks with a sulky exclamation. "Oh fine then, have it your way."

"I invariably do." Hinata said giving his hand a commiserating pat before returning her attention to her tea.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Kakashi, can I ask you a question?" It was several hours later and the pair were walking, not quite companionably, through the darkening streets of Konoha.

"You just did. But feel free to ask another. It's not like I could stop you anyway." Sasuke was prepared for the response and just waited until the copy-nin finished, what he had to ask seemed too touchy a subject to be… well losing his temper wouldn't help him get any answers, assuming the Hatake would actually give him any.

"Earlier on… what were you all talking about? What's happened to Ino and why was Hinata telling Naruto not to blame himself?" The copy-nin stopped and tilted his head back so he could see the shape of the moon, which was just starting to become visible in the evening sky.

"Hmm, yes. I thought you'd want to know about that." Kakashi turned and treated Sasuke to a look that made the dark haired male feel that his former teacher was seeing much more of him then his one time pupil would have liked him to. For a few long moments it seemed as if he would not get an answer but then the other Sharingan user started to walk once more and with a sigh began to speak.

"The long and the short of it is that not long after the Ho… screw it. Not long after Naruto became Hokage there was a dispute between Konoha and Suna, accusations were made, rumours were spread and the possibility of war became, well became a very real possibility. It was mostly thanks to the strong bond that Naruto and the Kazekage share that we were able to avoid such a fate. This was all in the aftermath of the war with the Akatsuki; the whole world seemed to have been turned upside down." He paused for a moment and his one visible eye seemed to glaze over as if he were looking at something only he could see.

Sasuke knew without needing to be told that his former teacher was briefly reliving the chaos and confusion that had been the aftermath of the bloody war. He wondered fleetingly what he would feel if he had been living in Konoha at that time, if he would have survived that pain that had left lingering shadows on everyone he met. And was ashamed to realise that he was relived that had not been around.

With a small shake of his head Kakashi pulled himself for the grip of the past and continued with his account. "Anyway after a lot and I mean a lot, of investigation was undertaken on both sides it was discovered that an outside group was hoping to provoke a war between Konoha and Suna for whatever reason. It was decided that in the best interests of all parties that this subversive group must be dealt with…. The information that had been gathered about the number of the enemy force was inaccurate. We were heavily out numbered and would surely not only have failed but have all died in the attempt if the Kazekage hadn't have sent back up –"

"Sounds similar to when they came to help… after I… with the sound four…." Sasuke shook he head, disgusted at his inability to voice his thoughts accurately in a coherent manner and wishing he hadn't even tried.

"Yeah, just like that." And for a moment something that just might have been amusement crossed the visible portion of the silver haired jounin's face before he became serious once more. "Most of us made it, even if we will carry the scars for life. But we lost six of the best ninja Konoha has seen on that mission… Yamanaka Inoichi was one of them. Naruto has never been able to forgive himself. Though it was only three years ago he was a lot younger then than he is now; he was a lot less experienced at dealing with the responsibilities that come with his rank. He blames himself for every death but more so for that of Inoichi. After… after you left –"

"You mean betrayed everyone." It was a fact and he had nothing to gain by shying away from it. The first step towards setting things right was admitting what you had done that was wrong. And betrayal was defiantly just about as wrong as things got.

"– Naruto and Ino grew very close, for a time it even seemed likely that they'd…" Kakashi trailed off, but Sasuke had already realised what the end of the sentence would have been and again felt the slight sting of jealousy at the thought of anyone being with Ino in such a way. "He's never been able to forgive himself for taking away the only family that she had and I think it's worse, for him at least, because she's never blamed him. Not once."

"I see." The dark haired male said as he tried to get his head around the information he'd been presented with. If he'd been thinking clearly he would have wondered where the head of the Yamanaka clan was, but he'd been too blinded by his objective, by Ino. The young woman who now was the head of the Yamanaka clan.

Who was the whole of the clan, just as he, since the demise of his uncle, was the whole of the Uchiha clan. "But there's still one thing I don't –"

"It's today." The masked shinobi interrupted as the pair came to a halt outside the house that for the time being served as home to both the Uchiha and the Yamanaka. "The anniversary to their death, of Inoichi's death is today."

"I didn't know." It was a stupid and obvious thing to say but Sasuke could think of nothing else.

A light was on in the room he knew to be Ino's And he wondered how long she had been home, what she had been doing and if just maybe she had missed not having him there. The odds were that she hadn't, that the blonde had enjoyed having time and space to herself away from her charge but there was always a chance that she had missed his company. If nothing else he was someone to throw insults at, right?

"She's been through enough already." Kakashi was already waking off and thus depriving Sasuke of the opportunity to questions the other male about his cryptic statement. But there was no way he could have missed the warning hidden in the words. Warning or possibly a threat.

Looking away from the departing figure dark eyes fixed once more on the lit bedroom window. _Oh Yamanaka_, Sasuke sighed mentally, _will you ever let me know how you're really feeling?_

* * *

Please R and R I'd love to know what you thought.

Big love and inspiration

Lamanth


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any of its characters, merchandise, TV rights, ect… (I think you get the point.)

* * *

Summery 

Sometimes in life you have to see things right through to the bitter end, even if you wish you didn't. (Sasuke/Ino)

Like all of my work this is just something that happened to float through the empty void inside my head. Like it or hate it please R and R as honest opinions are always welcomed, as are random acts of worship.

Lamb: As always sorry for any bad spelling and if you feel the need to throw things at me please wait until I've hidden behind the sofa kay!

_Dedi:_ This chapter is dedicated to **Drunkie**

M**use: **On with the fic!

* * *

_I can't go,  
But I can't stay,  
I'm stuck in the middle,  
And it's a crazy place,  
And now I'm that girl,  
I used to talk about,  
I'm stuck in the middle,  
And I can't get out,_

* * *

**Start to Finish**

According to the philosopher Itou Kazuo, chaos is found in greatest abundance wherever order is being sought, it always defeats order, because it is better organised.

The first time she had been called to the Hokage's office after Naruto had been named the Sixth, Ino had decided that the guy had definitely been onto something. And glancing around it was clear to see that his philosophy was still proving as true now as it had been three years back. The blond village leader did employ a clean desk policy, something that Shizune had tried in vain to get the greatest medic-nin in the five great nations to adopt during her time in office, it was just unfortunate that he was also a fan of the messy floor system.

There was not a scrap of paper on the beautifully carved cherry wood desk apart from the slim folder that pertained to the matter under discussion, the floor however looked as if it had been hit by an avalanche of mission reports and old files. Stacks of folders were piled in haphazard towers all over the place, stray notes that Ino supposed had been considered important at one time or another had been stuck to the walls with a combination of pins and sharp weapons. Naruto seemed to be working under the assumption that the really vital things were never written down. The way he saw it if someone had time to spare putting the facts down on paper, rather than spend every moment trying to come up with a solution, it couldn't be as much of a problem as people were trying to make out.

Though it seemed his working theory didn't apply to everything of a paperwork nature. For example there were several discarded lists of potential baby names lying under and around her chair. Half a dozen or so paint charts, Ino recognised Hinata's hand writing on one or two of them, lay like so many fallen leaves on the tilled floor. And from the top of a particularly tall accumulation of discarded information in the corner of the room a small teddy bear surveyed the utter confusion of paperwork.

The Yamanaka sat staring blankly into the middle distance, the voices of the three other people in the room nothing more than a droning background noise to her ears. The two blondes were taking her charge step by step through the mission specs, drilling into him all that he was and was not permitted to do. She didn't need to listen for she had already been briefed some hours earlier, that had been the same time when she had been questioned as to whether or not she could complete this assignment with him as her partner.

It was a simple, seek and destroy mission. Simple for someone with her mastery of the Shintenshin no Jutsu, but alas it also required someone with exceptional sight for the object that they were after, a scroll would be heavily guarded. Ino had carried out many of these types of mission before, mostly with Hyuuga Neji, a handful with his cousin Hinata and even the odd one or two with Kakashi. The memory of those rare few brought a slight smile to her lips, they had been completed quickly and efficiently, but they had celebrated their success as if they had single handily brought down the entire Akatsuki.

But all three were unavailable to accompany her this time round. Neji was on a deep cover mission; he had been away for over a month and was not likely to return for at least another two. Kakashi had recently been given another Genin team, which was eating into his time, and was also busy helping work out ways to improve on Konoha's security. And Hinata was seven months pregnant with the Sixth Hokage's first child, or rather his children, as it had come to light that she was in fact carrying triplets. Something that would have put any kunoichi out of action, but she was taking it excessively easy, as Naruto was so overwrought by the whole thing. There had also been a fare few comments along the lines of the hyperactive ninja having hyperactive swimmers, which hadn't helped matters that much.

So with those three all out of action for various reasons, there was only one person left who fulfilled the mission requirements.

Uchiha Sasuke, oh joy.

Yes, she had agreed to watch over the returned traitor but now to be forced into having his company on a mission as well… Sasuke was nodding his head, to show that he understood what Naruto was telling him, his dark eyes flicking towards Lady Tsunade every time the Sannin spoke. Ok, so forced was quite the right word, she had agreed to his company but only grudgingly and only as it was vital for the successes of her objective. But whatever the reasons, whatever her misgivings, she had agreed as long as cretin concessions were made, by Naruto, by Tsunade and by the Uchiha himself.

True things had become easier in the month since she had stormed out of their training session and gone and sobbed her heart out at her father's graveside. The only thing was while it had become a lost easier to be around Sasuke, the tension that filled her whenever she was forced to be in close proximity to him for any prolonged length of time was steadily increasing. Ino did not want to believe that any of her old feelings for the Uchiha remained but it was getting harder and harder to convince herself. It was true that she would slap his hands away whenever he would casually slip an arm around her waist but she could not pretend that she didn't like the way his fingers felt against her skin.

It also didn't help that he had taken to strolling casually through her dreams on a nightly bases, and while technically that wasn't Sasuke's fault Ino was still blaming him for it. Yes, ninja were trained to be able to go without sleep for up to three days if needed. But if it wasn't needed, which it most defiantly was not at the moment, then the mind walker was the kind of person who liked her full eight hours thank you very much. But increasingly she was finding that at night image of her charge would come to haunt her and she'd fall into dreams through which Sasuke stalked with a jungle grace. In the mornings she would wake, dazed and confused with the dreams hanging heavily around her, dreams of skilful lips and knowing hands.

And then to top it all off she would have to face the object of those dreams over the kitchen table ever morning. All that in its self was bad enough, but there was always an escape rout should Ino really need it. She could always palm Sasuke off on someone else for a few hours, nor harm no foul, even if the male in question didn't always agree. Or she could even just vanish into the garden just long enough to get her head back together. But on this mission there would be no respite, no reprieve, they would be stuck together the whole time.

Briefly Ino had considered asking to do the mission solo, but had thought better of it in the end. It was possible, if the user was proficient enough, to use the Yamanaka Clan Jutsu and send your mind into the body of another person while remaining in control of your own body. But it was a highly dangerous and risky thing to do. The user needed a will of tampered steal, for if concentration was lost for even the briefest of moments then it was possible to lose the connection to both bodies. It would leave the soul free-wheeling through time and space, unable to find its way back. Ino for one thought that death was preferable. Which was why she only used the technique when she really had no other choice.

Of course performing the Shintenshin in the normal way did come with its own set of risks, the most dangerous being that the body of the ninja in question was left open and vulnerable to attack. Which was why it was inadvisable to perform it in situations when there was no one who would be able to guard the abandoned body. Ino just wasn't very happy that this time she would have to leave her empty body in the tender care of Sasuke. She knew in her heart that he would not dare do anything harmful to her, but who knew what he might do to pay her back for those times she had left him alone with Sakura.

It almost made the risk of loosing her soul seem like the better option. But since both she and Sasuke would have to undergo a full physical before they set off, Tsunade would know upon their return if she had beaten him up for taking liberties with her body. Ino sighed; she'd just have to make sure that the raven-haired male knew exactly where he stood. Preferably close enough to keep her safe, but far enough away to keep him from doing anything she would make him live to regret.

XXXXXXXXXX

"So you and I, working alone?" Sasuke said as soon as the door closed behind them and quickly fell into step beside Ino wondering if the scolding would be worth it if he slipped his arm around her waist.

"It's easier to see through you that way." The kunoichi stated simply, inferring that not only did she know him better than he'd probably like, but that if it came to it she could always slip inside his head and see just what he was up to.

"I'm beginning to get the feeling that you don't completely trust me." He said, raising one dark brow at her his mouth lifting up slightly at the corners.

"Let's get one thing clear first, I don't trust you. So, no jutsu, no money, no weapons of any kind. And if I get so much as a hint that you're about to activate your Sharingan without my say so," Ino smiled evilly, and reaching up flicked one of the bangs that fell framing his face. "I'll leave you thinking you're a six-year-old girl… and then get Sakura to braid your hair."

"You wouldn't?" It was a rhetorical question, for the onyx eyed male would have been prepared to bet just about anything, except a night in the company of a certain pink-haired kunoichi, that the mind walker would do just as she promised.

"I'll even get her to play dress up with you," And again the slightly sly, somewhat evil smirk played around her mouth, it was a looked that Sasuke was forced to admit looked sexy as hell. "Though she'd probably like undress better."

"Fine. Fine. But talk about taking the fun out of life!" He huffed, wrapping his arm around her and pulling the blonde tightly to his side.

She snarled irritably and slapped his hand away. And then with a toss of her head began to stalk down the corridor, trying to pretend that she didn't know that Sasuke, who was now walking behind her, had his eyes fixed on her ass. Typical male.

XXXXXXXXXX

The next day saw Ino in a small privet room in Konoha's hospital with the former Hokage undergoing the standard medical exam that where possible was given to any ninja partaking in an undercover mission. Or at least it was meant to be, but due to the high number of missions and the low number of medics it was normally only done where the shinobi in question would be going into deep cover of any length of time. This time however it was happening because it was one of the conditions the Yamanaka had insisted upon.

Perhaps she was just letting her paranoia get the better of her but at least this way she would be able to match up all her cuts and scraps to ones that she had gained on the mission and the ones she had had before hand. And if just by chance anything was found to be out of the ordinary then she would personally over see Sasuke's castration.

"Right all this seems fine." Tsunade said ticking off something on the clipboard she held before tossing it down on top of one of the cupboards as she began pealing off her latex gloves.

"Should be, you're the one who gave me my last medical and," Ino unconsciously rubbed her arm at the pain of memory. "You're also the one who gave me my last set of booster jabs."

"Yes, I did. Didn't I." The smirk that crossed the amber eyed woman's face was almost pure evil, she could be sadistic when the time for vaccinations came round as both Ino and Sakura had learnt to their pain and cost and the Sannis's enjoyment. "Now any chance you might be pregnant?"

Both of them knew that she wasn't. Ino because her sex life was currently non-existent and Tsunade because she was one of the best medics ever, so skilled that she could detect a pregnancy a little under a month after conception. Both of them knew, and both of them knew why the older woman was asking.

"As you already know, no. None at all." The mind walker only just managed to stop herself from adding that chance would be a fine thing but it was almost as if Tsunade could read her mind.

"Really? How long since you got any?" And just like that the greatest medic that The Leaf had ever seen became a nosy woman who wanted all the juicy information about the sex life of her one time student. Ino knew which side of the other blonde she preferred to deal with and sadly waved goodbye to it as it disappeared over her one time sensei's internal event horizon.

"Ugh." The young blonde bit the inside of her lip but knew there was no way to get out of the interrogation with her dignity intact all she could do was suck it up and get it over with. Bracing herself for the ordeal to come she answered, all be it reluctantly. "Two months give or take a day."

"Hmm, what's wrong? Sasuke can't get it up?" Her amber eyes were alight with a combination of mischief and malice that would have seemed funny to Ino if it had been directed at anyone other than herself.

"I don't know and I don't care!" Her eyes were like chips of ice, and Tsunade was reminded irresistibly of the quote about the woman who protested too much. "I have not and will not sleep with the Uchiha traitor."

"If it's not _your_ little traitor that's giving it to you then who is it?" The look that crossed the kunoichi's face at the insinuation that Sasuke was in some way hers could have curdled milk at fifty paces.

"None of your business." Ino sniffed folding her arms cross her chest as she pointedly looked away from the older blonde. "And I'll have you know he's not my anything, except a pain in my ass."

"Well that would –" The other began, giving Ino a smug knowing look.

"No! I did not mean it like that!" The young woman growled her light blue eyes darkening as she fought to keep a hold on her temper. "Ugh! It always comes down to sex with you. Well he isn't getting any from me and I'm not tell you who I'm getting it from so you may as well just drop it."

It was an irritating fact that since Tsunade and Jiraiya had finally become an item the former had started sticking her nose into the privet lives of those closest to her and especially her students, of which she still counted Ino.

"You know you were much easier to interrogate when you were my apprentice and not Ibiki's." Ino just grinned at the reproachful tone. The only reason it had been easier was that Ino could no longer be threatened with the prospect to emptying bedpans for a week if she didn't spill all of her gossip.

"Life's a bitch. Just like me and that's one thing I didn't learn from Ibiki." If the subtle jib that the busty blonde was a bitch didn't go over Tsunade's head she certainly acted as if it had, but she had always preferred her own whit to anyone else's.

"He wants you, you know." Just like a dog, or possible a bitch, with a bone she refused to drop the subject of the sex Sasuke and Ino were not having.

"What! Ibiki!" Ino scrunched up her nose in disgust and gave a theatrical shudder. As a mentor and teacher Morino Ibiki was one of the best, but as a lover… she shuddered again, no thank-you.

"No you twit and I thought Naruto was our token dumb blonde." She ignored the face that Ino pulled at the comment far too used to how childish her one time student's behaviour could be at times. "I was talking about Sasuke, he wants you."

"So people keep saying." Ino dead panned and rolled her eyes but her heart wasn't really in it.

"So who else has been telling you what I've known since the moment he got back?" The medic pushed, trying to get as much information out of the arctic blonde as she could.

In the past few weeks Ino had almost lost count of how many people had told her the exact same thing. Kakashi had repeated it several times as had Hinata. Kiba had also told her once, while Shika just glared at Sasuke and muttered troublesome which amounted to the same thing. And visiting from Suna, Temari had greeted her with a cheerful _"So has the horny little traitor managed to jump your bones yet?"_

"This is another thing that comes under the category of none of your damn business." The blue eyed young woman sniffed; it seemed her privet life was anything but privet and everyone was ready to tell her just what it was, or rather who, she could be doing.

"Ahh the jealous lover." Tsunade said with a smirk, unaware of how right and yet still very wrong she was with her well-calculated guess. Lover, yes. Jealous, no.

"There are times you know," Ino started as she slipped off of the bed and headed towards the door. "When I really hate you."

"Funny," She said idly pulling the forms off of her discarded clipboard and slipping them into a folder. "You're not the first person to say that."

"Hang on…" Ino paused in the act of reaching for the door handle and turned back to face Tsunade. "What did you mean when you said that you'd known from the moment he got back?"

"Well you know that state he was in when he was carried, or rather was dragged back, yes? And that he had to be hospitalised for a while?" The jounin nodded, her eyes fixed upon the most powerful in influential kunoichi the land of fire had ever seen. "Yeah, we heal them up just so you lot can brake them down again. Anyway he was in rather a bad way; kept drifting in and out of consciousness… he was almost completely drained of chakra, one of his wounds had become infected and he was running a fever, so as you can imagine he was pretty out of it. But he kept calling out you see, a lot of the time it was for his brother which was understandable. But the rest of the time it was your name he called and that kinda makes you think, doesn't it Ino?"

"Maybe." She conceded as she continued her interrupted journey through the doorway, now if only she could work out what it was that it was meant to make her think she'd be all sorted.

XXXXXXXXXX

"So Sasuke," Tsunade said with an overly sweet smile as the Uchiha took the place that up until five minuets ago that the mind walking kunoichi had been occupying. "I hear tell that you're not getting any from Ino."

Somehow Sasuke managed to keep his jaw from dropping; though looking back he wouldn't be able to remember quite how he had achieved such a feat. The former Hokage was watching him the same way that a cat might watch a mouse hole, she had him right where she wanted him and he had no hope of escaping until she decided to let him go.

"Has anyone ever told you that you are absolutely repellent when you smirk?" She sniggered delightedly.

"And that it's almost impossible to insult you without you taking it as some form of complement?" She sniggered once more and Sasuke prepared himself for what would turn out to be the worst interrogation he would ever have to go.

At least the ANBU had just wanted to know about possible plans for invasion, the blonde Sannin wanted to know about his sex life or lack there of and wouldn't stop until she had all the information that she wanted. And worse still was that he had to undergo a full medical at the same time which meant she had every right to prod and poke and pull at him as much as he liked.

Longingly Sasuke thought back to his happy days under Ibiki's care, at least he had just been happy to abuse him he hadn't felt the need to humiliate him as well.

XXXXXXXXXX

Roughly an hour later Sasuke walked out of the small privet room in which the exam had taken place to see Ino exactly where he had left her still apparently engrossed in the same magazine.

"I hate her." Sasuke finally said when they stepped out into the late afternoon sun and began the short walk to their shared accommodation.

"Join the club." Ino responded in monotone, raising one hand to shield her eyes from the bright glare of the sun.

"Will there be T-shirts?" His tone was still somewhat sullen as he rotated his shoulders, he was sure the blonde had almost dislocated them and had done so deliberately.

"We're having them printed up as we speak." The mind walker said in a neutral tone and somehow managed to keep a straight face.

"How would she feel if someone questioned her on every detail of her sex life?" Sasuke knew how he had felt. Violated was putting it mildly and the worst thing was he couldn't have just told the old bat to get lost not unless he had wanted her to perform a spur of the moment amputation on certain parts of his anatomy.

"We don't need to," Onyx orbs flickered sideways to see the slight smile on the Yamanaka's lips, as if she were enjoying a privet joke. "All we have to do is bide our time and wait."

"For what?" Sasuke questioned as he unlocked the door and then stepped back so that the blue eyed female could enter before he did.

"For Jiraiya-sama's next book." Ino stated it as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, which for some people it really was. She, Sakura and Naruto were placing bets on how many walls Tsunade would knock the author through when the book was published.

"I'm not sure if that makes me feel better or just slightly queasy." The Uchiha shook his head while he unconsciously rubbed a hand across his stomach.

"I know the feeling well." And her tone was almost sympathetic as she started up the stairs that would lead her to her bedroom. "Lets pack."

"All right. But really Yamanaka," Sasuke tired and failed to keep his eyes off or her pert backside as she made her was towards the second floor. "His next book…?"

"What?" She said pausing on the staircase and turning to look back at him still standing in the hallway.

"D'you really think he will?" He raised one dark brow at her inky eyes fixed on her face.

"The question is d'you really think the pervy sage wouldn't?" Ino flashed him a bright sunny smile before vanishing up the remainder of the stairs in a blur of pale gold and dark purple.

* * *

Please R and R I'd love to know what you thought.

Happy New Year

Big love and inspiration

Lamanth


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any of its characters, merchandise, TV rights, ect… (I think you get the point.)

* * *

Summery 

Sometimes in life you have to see things right through to the bitter end, even if you wish you didn't. (Sasuke/Ino)

Like all of my work this is just something that happened to float through the empty void inside my head. Like it or hate it please R and R as honest opinions are always welcomed, as are random acts of worship.

Lamb: As always sorry for any bad spelling and if you feel the need to throw things at me please wait until I've hidden behind the sofa kay!

_Dedi:_ This chapter is dedicated to **shadowphoenix101**

M**use: **On with the fic!

* * *

_I saw my girl with the golden touch,  
Give them a taste but not too much,  
I just can't listen to the words of fools,  
But don't give away too much,  
Someone will need your golden touch,_

* * *

**Start to Finish**

"Best to reconsider that 'no weapon' rule." Sasuke said, watching as Ino forced green tinted chakra into the deep gash in his left arm. A cut that ran from the point of his elbow to right up to his shoulder and had neatly sliced apart the muscle as it had gone.

"No." Ino snapped as she continued with her task. Trying to focus on the task at hand, rather than Sasuke's naked torso and just how close she was having to get to him to have to heal the wound.

They had made the journey to the secluded village in less than three days, a good time, and had run into no trouble, something that had slightly concerned Ino. It was a fact she knew, though she was careful not to boast about it, that she was very good at her job and that the Uchiha, for all his other faults was also a highly skilled ninja. But still even with all their combined skill, even though she knew that she could move across open country almost undetected something in Ino said that the journey had been just a little too easy.

It wasn't that Ino wanted to run into trouble, an evil little voice in the back of her mind commented that she was just sitting in trouble's lap instead, it was just that something felt out of place. And after twenty-two years the blonde kunoichi had learned, sometimes to her cost, that it always paid to listen to her instincts.

If she had been pushed for an answer however, the Yamanaka wouldn't have been able to say what it was that worried her most. That she and Sasuke had not been disturbed on the road, which may have just been a handy piece of luck. Or that it felt as if they were being let through, as if someone had been watching them like they were rats in a trap. Ino was disinclined to believe that it had been luck, for that phenomenon she had about as much time as she had for destiny and fate.

However the idea that it was simply luck was far more preferable that the idea that someone, or something, had _let_ her pass. Orochimaru was dead, killed by Sasuke's own hand, but that didn't mean that the threat he had posed was over. The snake like Sannin had had many followers, and Ino didn't doubt that even after his death he still had his supporters. And nothing could motivate people quite so much as the tantalising prospect of revenge.

The Akatsuki had been left in chaos after Sasuke's little run in with his brother and several of his associates which had left the remainder of the organisation if not an easy target at least a more reasonable one. And so under the combined forces of Konoha and Suna they had fallen. But again just because they were gone didn't mean the threat was over. They too had had their supporters, some of whom were still at large, and though the organisation had fallen to the might of two Hidden Villages the master of the Mangekyo Sharingan was considered to be the catalyst.

Part of the reason Sasuke had come back to Konoha was for the protection that the Hidden Leaf Village could offer, he was after all a wanted man in more ways than one. But out here in this secluded little port side village, away from safeguard her home offered Ino felt far too alone and exposed for her liking. And not just physically with regards to her safety or the mission.

This far from home, without the security of her friends as a barrier, she had been left without a shield from her emotions and it would only be so long before she would have to confront the painful truth that she had been hiding even from herself.

Suddenly she shook her head slightly as if to clear it. Ino mentally scolded herself, she was most likely just jumping at shadows and as for the other, well she was just reading far too much into things. It was a Yamanaka flaw, probably a side effect form spending so much time inside other people's heads and anyway she could wonder about everything later, for now what she really needed to do was just concentrate on the task in hand. And the fact that what she had in hand was a half-naked Uchiha didn't really make things any easier.

They had checked into a small Inn, grateful when the proprietor had asked them no questions, and with plenty of daylight left they had made a small re-con to where an abandoned temple had fallen into ruin. It was rumoured to be the main hideout of the scroll thieves, which put it high on Ino's list of places to check out.

Almost within sight of the ruin they had been unlucky enough to run across a group of scouts, thus had been lost the element of surprise. But with no other option open the two ninja had quickly disposed of the hired tugs, for that was all that they were. They had no real skill to speak of, but one had still managed to score the hit on Sasuke's arm, something the dark haired shinobi was blaming on Ino. He had tried to block the attack but with no weapon to aid him, he had not been able to deflect the blow and the enemy blade had sunk deeply into his arm. A moment later he had snapped the man's neck but the damage had already been done.

Sasuke shifted slightly earning a slight hiss from the blonde kunoichi before she turned her eyes once more to her chore. The angle of the deep cut was such that the only way Ino could effectively reach it was by making him hold the arm over his head while she straddled his lap. He tried to keep breathing in a steady rhythm though it was so tempting to breathe in deep lungfuls of the scent that was uniquely that of Yamanaka Ino. It was intoxicating, a combination of earth and sweat, but under that the slight floral hints that spoke of sun filled days in grassy meadows. And he could picture himself rolling around in that meadow, the athletic blonde in his arms.

In spite of him self, the proud Uchiha found himself entranced by the young woman's face; her eyes intense and her brow furrowed in concentration while she nibbled on her sensuously full bottom lip. The tension in his groin was almost painful and he didn't know how much longer he would be able to ignore the demands his body was making. In his minds eye he could see himself grabbing hold of the Yamanaka, pinning her to the bed and doing all the things he had been fantasising about for so long. It was a testament to the strength of his will that he remained motionless.

Feeling more relived than she would care to admit, Ino climbed off of his lap pretending that she had not felt the hardness of his erection pressing against her thigh. More than a little perturbed at the way that her heart was racing and the deep hunger that gnawed in the pit of her stomach, a hunger that had nothing to do with needing to eat.

"There, all done." Ino said, her voice just a little higher than normal and a brittle brightness colouring her tone.

Pausing only long enough to snatch up a towel and a change of cloths, the blue-eyed female strode quickly into the adjoining bathroom, locking the door firmly behind her. Turing on the shower Ino hastily dumped her stuff on the floor, stripped and stepped under the comfortingly warm water. She sighed and pressed her forehead against the tiled wall as the scolding water cascaded over her naked body. As Ino stood with the water spraying down onto her shoulders, she felt the little tiny rivers of water running down her spine, leaving tingly trails as they flowed down to the small of her back and firm ass before falling to the tub.

It was so wrong, Ino knew it, she wasn't meant to want him any more. But she could no longer deny the way that her body reacted whenever he looked at her or the way that she would constantly steal glances at him, hoping to catch his eyes flickering in her direction. She bit down on her lip to keep from crying out when, seemingly of its own accord, her hand strayed to the heat that was gathering between her legs, hoping to releases a little of the tension that had slowing been growing within her.

It took hardly anything at all to have the tight ring to fire contracting in her belly and electricity shooting up and down her spine. A couple more strokes and her eyes were rolling back in her head as lights danced behind her closed lids. And with only a few more the wave of sensation crashed down over her and left her body shaky and trembling as his name fell half whispered from her lips.

"Sasuke."

XXXXXXXXXX

"Where do I fit in?" Sasuke questioned some half an hour later. When Ino sat upon the other bed, her legs tucked up under her and her body completely concealed by the large baggy black T-shirt that stood out in stark contrast to her fair skin. Damp silver blonde hair was falling loosely around her and the colour was riding high in her cheeks.

"You're my eyes. If Neji wasn't on a deep cover mission then trust me you wouldn't be here." Ino responded drolly, deciding on the spur of the moment that she did not what to mention the times she had been accompanied by Kakashi.

For not everything that they had done had ended up in their mission reports. And though she was the one that was able to walk in and out of peoples heads in the past few months, the Uchiha had developed a disturbing habit on picking up the things she had left unsaid. It was like he could fill in the spaces around her words, and it was something that irritated her no end.

"I mean, when you think back on the vast scheme of your adventurous life, where do I fit in?" And even as he asked Sasuke was forced to wonder again, as he had been doing so much, just why he cared so much what the Yamanaka thought or felt. "Was I the love of your life or just a childhood crush?"

"Do you really need me to answer that?" She asked blithely, but when he didn't reply gave him what he had asked for. "You were an adolescent infatuation."

"Come on, it had to be more than that, and we both know I'm right." Sasuke persisted, not knowing how much truth his words really held. "And now you're laughing at me."

"Yes, because for some strange reason I used to find you charming." The sarcasm in her tone was not lost on Sasuke, but it had been said lightly, almost affectionately and he could still hear the laughter in her voice.

"I am charming," Ino snorted her disagreement. "Sakura still seems to think so anyway."

"Oh well, she never did have much taste." She teased looking over at his pouting face. "Or much sense for that matter." He looked rather like a toddler who had just had his favourite toy snatched away.

"Some thing's don't change with time." He looked up, saw the way Ino's mouth twitched as she tired to fight her amusement until the bright grin light up her face. "I think that's the first time you've actually smiled because of me."

Sasuke's smile mirrored her own, and Ino was suddenly aware that no matter how much he had changed that this man had once been the young boy she had idolised. It had been far more than a crush or puppy love, though people had laughed when she told them. For it had not just been a romantic attraction for Ino, when she said she idolised Sasuke she had meant it. He was the reason for everything she did; the blonde had worked harder than anyone else had so she could get the highest marks she could. She had trained until her fingers bleed, determined to be that best kunoichi that she could.

Something in Ino's stomach leapt as she looked at his warm and open face and hastily looked away. "It's getting late, we should sleep."

Following words with actions, Ino slipped under the covers on her bed and turned her back on the room's other occupant. Sasuke followed suit, unsure what to make of the blonde's sudden shift in mood. One moment it seemed he was getting closer to her than he ever had before and then it was as if a metal door had been slammed in front of him. She just seemed to close down and block him out for no reason he could work out.

"Goodnight Yamanaka." He said, but was not surprised when his words elicited no response.

Ino bit her lip to keep it from trembling; she could feel the tears pricking the backs of her eyes and hated it because she knew that he didn't deserve them. As a child she had looked at Sasuke and swore that no matter what it took, whatever price she had to pay, one day she would be as strong a shinobi as he was. And then he had suddenly turned his back on everyone, betrayed the village that had sheltered him for all of his young life, and shattered Ino's world apart.

It was then that she had appreciated just how stupid and naive she had really been. All this time she had been trying to live up to his standard, but the truth was she had already long surpassed him for there was nothing in the whole wide world that would cause her to turn traitor.

But as she lay curled in the dark listening to the soothing sound of his breathing Ino was forced to face the most unpleasant truth of all. That as much as she had hated and despised Sasuke for running out on everyone, a part of her had continued to love him. And that small part of her probably still did.

XXXXXXXXXX

It was well past midnight and Ino, who had not been able to settle into sleep, had managed instead to work her way through most of her emotional spectrum. From the tearful point she had started at when she had first tried to settle she had gone through a wide range of her emotions and was currently settled on feeling irritated, angry and just a little resigned. But was so feeling put upon and very much 'life is so unfair' ish.

If only there was some way that she could take her feelings out of the equation, or at least get rid of enough of them so she could just screw Sasuke and there by get him out of her system. A zippless fuck, wasn't that how Kiba had described… well in truth just about everyone he'd ever slept with, but right now Ino could see the attraction. If she could just given in to temptation without having to worry about the effect it would have on her heart it would make things so much easier.

If…

If…

If…

It always came back to that one little word. Those same two letters that were slowly starting to drive her insane. In reality it shouldn't have been that hard, hell it shouldn't have been hard at all… except in one specifically localised area of course, the traitorous little voice in the back of her head chirped happily. Casual sexual encounters were normal for just about all shinobi and Ino was no exception. The sort of behaviour that would have had her, as well as a lot of her friends, labelled a slut if they were civilians was considered common place.

She knew that civilian girls looked at kunoichi and envied them. Envied them their sexual freedom while somehow seeming to remain oblivious of the darker side of the lives they lead. That they lived in the constant shadow of pain and death. And that it was this very lifestyle that in a way forced them to be as open with their sexuality as they were and to act on mutual attraction whenever the opportunity presented its self. When you lived with the risk that you would not live to see another sunrise you had to snatch at the prospect of happiness wherever you found it. With whomever you found it.

She had lost her virginity to Shikamaru at fifteen, which was not all the unexpected and neither was the fact that his first time had been with Temari. That the Suna blonde had first slept with Shino was somewhat of a shock as too was the fact that it had first been Tenten who had taken the bug-nin to bed. That Neji had been the one to take her innocence was something that everyone had known almost before it happened, but it was the fact that the first one to get their hands on the Hyuuga protégé was Anko had really made everyone sit up and pay attention.

Ino shook her head and mentally put the brakes on the train of her thoughts before she could add more of her friends names to the ever growing list. If you looked hard enough for long enough you would probably be able to prove that most, if not all, the ninja of Konoha as well as some of their allies had bedded each other at some point or other. It wasn't that it was strictly easier it was just that it made more sense.

After all who in their right mind would willing sleep with a demon vessel? Kunoichi were not in their right mind, couldn't be because of what was demanded of them, and Ino who had been inside more twisted minds than people could imagine was more demented than most. Maybe that was why she had no problem in lying with the Kazekage before the Akatsuki attack that resulted in the removal of Shukaku. Which meant she was probably the only girl alive who had even slept with two Jinchūriki, both of whom were now the leaders of their respective villages. Maybe it was the hint of danger that attracted her so much, since the last thing you could describe Sasuke as was safe.

Many a young girl… in fact many females regardless of their age had had their hearts broken because they just couldn't, or wouldn't, understand that sometimes to a shinobi it really was just about the sex. No strings attached. Two ships that pass in the night. Or any other cliché you'd like to throw at it. So many of them, in their naive, sheltered life way had thought that with them it would be different, that they could be the one to change the male in question. They never were. Well mostly they never where, but when they were everyone could see it from a mile away so there was no point in them trying to delude themselves.

It was just the same for the kunoichi only they didn't have quite so much trouble. They were like knives in a way: some may have clean elegant lines, others may have curved blades and others may have precious gems set into ornate hilts. But they were all beautiful and they were all deadly just as all kunoichi were. Nothing it seemed was more intimidating to the average male than a strong, sexually independent woman. The average male civilian that was, most shinobi on the other hand seemed to actively enjoy having a partner who wasn't afraid to give as good as she got.

Who else but another shinobi could fully understand what it was like to just want that purely physically contact with another person? That after the horrors and hells that you had witnessed, that after you had scrubbed your skin raw trying to remove the blood that you imagined you could still see on your skin all you wanted was the physically touch of another person. Just that and nothing but that. To feel another person but not have to emotionally engage with them. Because sometimes you just wanted to be there but let your mind close down so you wouldn't have to face reality.

Not that it was always like that.

A light smile tugged at Ino's lips as she easily recalled the memory; she had just turned sixteen the first time she and Naruto had slept together. The two of them had completed a relatively low-key mission and gone to a bar to celebrate. They had been flushed and more than a little worse for ware by the time that they had stumbled back to his home, giggling like a pair of naught kids in-between sloppy kisses. In the morning things should have been difficult and awkward, but they weren't. She had teased him about bed hair and how it made him look like a hedgehog that had had a run in with an electric socket. He had just countered that she was a fine one to be talking, sitting there looking like a zombie with last nights mascara all smeared round her eyes. And laughing and giggling like a pair of normal teens they had made love again.

It was both the right and the wrong way to describe it. There was love there, but not the right kind of love. In was a best friend kind of love, brother/sister kind of love, a closer than blood kind of love, and an 'I'll be there for you as the world falls down' kind of love. But there was no romantic attraction. It shouldn't have worked, it should have driven them apart but it didn't because they were ninja and instinctively knew what the other needed. It was harmless fun while it lasted, light relief and an emotional outlet and both of them knew that when it was over nothing would change.

And it hadn't. They had shared a few happy months together, but when the physical aspect of their relationship petered out their friendship remained just the same as it had always been. That was why years later Ino had squealed like a child when Hinata had told her that Naruto finally got his ass in gear and asked the Hyuuga out. Why she has cried with delighted laughter when she was found out that Naruto had asked the opal eyes girl to marry him. Why she had beaten the blond fool around the head and chided him for taking so long. And why she had been unable to stop the tears of happiness from escaping her eyes when she heard that the indigo haired young woman was pregnant.

They were in love, always had been, even if there had been a time when Naruto was too blind to see it. And in a way, Ino was being forced to realize; the same was true for her. The only difference being that while Naruto and Hinata had finally managed to come together, if she acted on her feelings...

No, the last thing she could describe Uchiha Sasuke as was safe and commonsense told her that getting emotionally involved with him in anyway would be both stupid and dangerous. But the problem was every time he looked at her commonsense went out the window.

* * *

Please R and R I'd love to know what you thought.

Big love and inspiration

Lamanth


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any of its characters, merchandise, TV rights, ect… (I think you get the point.)

* * *

Summery 

Sometimes in life you have to see things right through to the bitter end, even if you wish you didn't. (Sasuke/Ino)

"Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished and persons attempting to find a plot in it will be shot." -Mark Twain

Lamb: As always sorry for any bad spelling and if you feel the need to throw things at me please wait until I've hidden behind the sofa kay!

_Dedi:_ This fic is dedicated to **Langioletto**

M**use: **On with the fic!

* * *

_Yeah I can feel it, baby,  
I feel like I'm falling for you,  
But I'm scared to, let go,  
I'm scared coz my heart has been hurt so,  
And I've got to be sure,  
Coz it's been so long,  
And I cannot take the pain again,  
If it all goes wrong,_

* * *

**Start to Finish**

Ino wasn't peevish, she was down right furious. She had never liked having to go undercover; dressing up like a china doll just riled her and always left her snappy and irritable. But it was what was required for this mission, a mission that was quickly becoming more trouble than it was worth. She threw an annoyed glance at Sasuke, who was looking far too relaxed, not to mention undeniably sexy, in his civilian clothing.

She knew she was being shrewish and short-tempered but didn't really care and sleep deprivation was only making things worse. While it was true that she was used to spending an excessive amount of time in Sasuke's company, she was having to live with him after all, sleeping in the same room as him was proving to be somewhat difficult. In fact it was proving to be almost impossible. Having him in such close proximity was reeking havoc with her mind and the best she had managed last night was a light doze but even that had been filled with dreams that had left her thinking a cold shower might be in order.

As far as Ino was concerned the sooner that this mission was over and done with and she could get back to despising the Uchiha from the relative safety of her own room, the happier she would be.

"You know why you and I get along so well?" Sasuke said casually, his eyes following the movements of Ino's hands as she secured her obi in place.

"No." Ino responded, not really caring what he had to say, too busy worrying about getting the heavy dark purple fabric of her kimono to settle correctly.

"We are two of a kind, me and you." He said the words softly, watching intently for her reaction from where he lay sprawled across his bed.

Her hands stilled and she turned to stare at the Uchiha in wide-eyed incredulity. "We are nothing alike."

"I don't think we're alike." He said, dark eyes fixed on her. She looked so different dressed up like that, different and yet still the same Ino he used to know. "But I do think we're a pair. Opposite sides of the same coin."

"And I think you're delusional." The blonde huffed as she stalked out of the door, though she was somewhat hampered by the way the kimono restricted her movement. Kami, but she just hated civilian clothing.

A sound somewhere between a sigh and a laugh slipped past Sasuke's lips as he rose from the bed, stretched until his back clicked and followed his partner out of the room. They were more alike than Ino would ever care to admit. Both of them hot tempered and strong willed. Always convinced that they were in the right and neither of them ever knew when to back down.

They were both independent and free spirited. Strong and determined that they could stand-alone and take on the whole world. Take it on and win. But the reason they were so resolved to prove that they could make it on their own was because there was no choice; they were on their own. She was perfection, yet broken too. Just as he knew himself to be. With him the person you saw first was not the really person, it was the mask. With Yamanaka Ino all you ever saw was what she wanted you to see.

They wanted to show that they were fine on their own, that the didn't need of want the help of anyone else. But he knew it was a lie. It wasn't that they, didn't want anyone to get close it was the fear of what would happen if they did. Never let anyone hold you for they might just be looking for a good place to stick a knife.

And perhaps that was it, the closest bond that they shared regardless of how much she might deny it. That most of all both of them desperately looking for something that they were scared to find.

XXXXXXXXXX

They were hardly back inside their room before the tempestuous blonde was tugging furiously at the fastenings of her clothing. It was bad enough, Ino felt, to have to wear such an uncomfortable thing but on top of that was the way that men had been openly leering at her. Not that that was something new to her, it was just under normal circumstances she was able to turn round and knock said guys out. Today, however, she had been forced to rely on the presence of Sasuke to keep away any unwanted attention, something, she grudgingly had to admit, he had done well.

Shaking his head in amusement, Sasuke moved over to where Ino was engaging in a tug-o-war with her outfit and with practised easy helped her loosen the obi that was preventing her from gaining her freedom. He let the fabric run through his fingers, enjoying the feel of the soft silk against his rough skin. The blonde stilled instantly the moment she felt his hands on her, her breath seemed to catch in her throat and swallowing suddenly became impossible. Ino couldn't work out if she was relived or disappointed when he stepped back the moment the tie was undone, and was scared that she couldn't simply be grateful.

But then she could still feel the way his arm had wound around her waist, drawing her tightly to him when one male had tried to get just a little too close to her. Goose bumps had erupted across her flesh, in spite of the heat of the day and the heavy fabric of her kimono, pulling her skin so tout that the sensation was one that almost boarded on pain. It was nothing really, just a way to make the man in question back off, but it had felt so good to have him hold her like that as if she was his and he wasn't about to let anyone else touch her. Without really thinking about it she had turned into the embrace, revelling in the warmth of his body against hers.

She looked up into his face, his features hidden in darkness, as he stood silhouetted against the sun; his mouth unsmiling almost stern and eyes that burned with thoughts she could not recognise. For one heart stopping moment it had felt as if he were staring directly into her soul, and there was something so desperately hot and needy in his eyes that it almost took her breath away. And then reality suddenly rolled back over her and Ino quickly pulled away trying to act as if nothing had happened. But she knew that it was useless, for in that instant she had given everything away. He now knew how she felt and she knew that she would never be able to lie to herself about what she had felt in that moment when his eyes had locked with hers.

Though currently that was the least of her problems. Regardless of how testy it had made her, the civilian clothing had worked perfectly, just as she had known it would, and they had been able to gather all the information they needed about the scroll and its whereabouts. All the information that they needed and even more besides. Ino had not asked what was written on the scroll that required it be destroyed, it was a fact that had not been offered to her and it was not something that the mind walker had thought to question. She had been doing this job long enough to know that there were times when it paid not to be in possession of all the facts. And this was one of those times.

It was just a sad fact that at times she was too damn good at her job. What they had wanted was to know where the scroll was and what kind of protection it was being given, this they had learned but what their helpful informer had also eagerly let slip was what the scroll contained. And it was this that was currently worrying the blue-eyed blonde.

The scroll pertained to a Jutsu that could bring the dead back to life.

Ino smiled her thanks at Sasuke before picking up a change of clothes and heading for the bathroom. Following the same routine she had the previous night, she quickly stripped off and stepped under the hot spray of near scolding water. Once again she pressed her forehead to the coolness of the tiles and tired to clear her mind. What she really needed to do was think, to go over what she had learned today, sort out the facts and try and work out what she was going to do.

The Yamanaka had heard of such things before. The story of how Orochimaru, may the snake rot in pieces, had summoned the first and second Hokage's to aid him in his fight against the third was one that was told so often that it was almost a legend. Yet it had not really been the two powerful men back from the dead, just pale imitations which was why Orochimaru had been able to bend them to his will. From what the informant had told them the Jutsu on the stolen scroll had the power to being back the true essence of the person in question.

However there was a price. As with everything in nature it was about balance and to give life to the dead a living sacrifice would be required. It was something that Ino could never, would never, be able to do, give up one life for another. For in her mind no one had the right to play Kami and dictate who should live and who should die. True you could say the so and so was an S-ranked criminal who committed acts of unimaginable evil, that they deserved to die. That was all right, and as an assassin she had taken her fair share of lives.

But what Ino didn't think was that you could say the so and so was an S-ranked criminal who committed acts of unimaginable evil, that they deserved to die, so we will take their life and give it to another. It would start off like that, but sooner or later anyone would do as long as it meant that the loved one that had been lost could be brought back. It was the first pebble that warned of the avalanche that was to follow. It would start off with someone trying to do what they perceived as the right thing, trying to help, but there was a good reason why Jutsu such as these were forbidden.

But the blonde could not pretend that she had not seen the way that a deep dark longing had flashed though the onyx eyes of the last Uchiha. Ino knew that in that moment he had seen a way to undo that damage that he had done, to bring back the brother he had hated for so long for robbing him of his family when in truth Uchiha Itachi had been protecting his baby brother.

Ino let herself sink to the bottom of the tub; she drew he knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms tightly around her legs. The water from the shower was like a hot rain against her skin. She buried her head in the gap she had created and hoped that she would work out what she should do.

XXXXXXXXXX

Hours later and the inside of their shared room was filled with inky darkness; it spread through the air and occupied the corners with velvety shadow. Ino hovered on the brink of sleep her head filled with strange half-formed thoughts. Thoughts of her dead parents, of tomorrow's mission, Uchiha Sasuke and the scroll that was the reason for what she was doing here. The scroll that she thought Sasuke might not be willing to see destroyed.

Sasuke who was sleeping in a bed only a few feet away from her, so close yet so out of reach. She knew that it was stupid, the things that she wanted in her life, a family, a home, someone she could grow old with, they were things that he could not give her. There was no security with Sasuke, no hope of a future. But Ino didn't have the will to fight it anymore. She'd been fighting her feelings for him since he left the village ten long years ago, and the wall she'd built around her heart had been slowly cracking since the moment she had first stepped into that interrogation room.

She was so lost in her thoughts that Ino almost failed to detect the slight change in the air as a person moved through the shadows. Almost, but not quite. Instantly every sense was on high alert as she strained every fiber of her being to find out who the person in the room might be. But there was nothing to guide her, no unfamiliar scent or sound, not even the telltale sign of a different chakra signature. Only the subtle shift in the air as the person moved.

The blonde could feel the person coming closer and closer to where she lay and felt her whole body tense like a spring as she slowly reached for the kunai that was secreted under her pillow. And as she felt the person lean over her reacted. In an instant Ino was up her legs swung out of the bed as she tightly gripped the arm of the person who had approached her. She exerted enough pressure on the limb to force the individual to their knees unless they wanted their femur snapped liked a twig and pressed the sharp blade she held in her other hand to their juggler.

"You can brake my wrist Yamanaka," Sasuke's voice was a honeyed gravel whisper in the dark. "But I'm still going to kiss you."

She wasn't really surprised, the moment her mind had cleared she had come to the conclusion that it was he who had come to her bed. It was the only explanation for why she had sensed no foreign chakra signature and why Sasuke would have slept through the entry of the intruder. The weapon dropped from her hand as slowly, almost reluctantly, she released her hold on him and sat there trembling slightly as for one long moment he did nothing but stare openly up at her.

And then at last he moved, rising slowly from where he had been kneeling on the floor, his hands travelling up the smooth creamy skin of her legs. His fingers caught the hem of the oversized, baggy black T-shirt she wore and drew the dark cotton up until it was bunched at her waist and all the while his eyes remained fixed on her face. Her wide ice-blue orbs saw him new and unknown as he hovered in front of her until at last he leaned down and touched her up-reaching mouth with his, barely touched. Moved with a lingering intimate contact that seemed to stop time its self. All his excited waiting had been nothing compared to this silence in a touch that was gentle, so gentle. And she was lost with him in this discovery, the warm rushes of their mingled breath, this slow undemanding meeting.

The emptiness of long separation dissolved in this meeting breath for breath. And he skilfully manoeuvred her back down onto the bed even as she touched his sensitive beautiful mouth, tracing her fingers around and in between their kiss. Her fingers searched the smooth lines of his face, his high forehead and over and over through his thick ebony hair, curling and winding it around her sender fingers. The still touching of their lips changed in intensity until they seemed of one breath.

There was so much to find in each other. They sought within the truth of their bodies for the knowledge of who they were to one another, until finally, even that seeking, through the breath and hands ceased. He pulled back seeing her slightly dazed expression as she lay completely naked beneath him and then cupping her face in his hands moved to her again, covering her mouth and kissing the full depth of her as if trying to drink her down, until finally breathless they parted.

He held her arms outstretched over her head, as he kissed her eyes, her nose, and every other place that he could reach. She shivered, tensed to the point of abstraction, but when he found the sensitive spot on the side of her neck and kissed it with smooth, dry lips, kisses light as a silk touch, the tension faded and she felt her body loosen to his touch. She felt as though storm clouds were racing across some internal landscape, accumulating over one precise point in her body. His lips found the swell of her left breast and bolts of electricity flashed though her flesh, her gasp echoed like thunder throughout her head.

He was everywhere at once and she, delirious with sensation, felt the last vestiges of her earth bound rational mind float away. Her grip on his hands tightened reflexively, tensing from the sudden sensation as he settled himself between her legs. He tensed as well, finding it surprisingly natural and easy to come together with her like this. With one more meaningful glance, he let his instinct take control, his motion slow and easy at first. She gasped lightly, arching up to meet him, as the wondrous sensation of being filled by him hit her all at once.

As soon as she began to relax, he increased his pace, letting out a small gasp his own. Girls had come and gone throughout his life but this was something completely unexpected. Something entirely new, this sense of connecting with someone else on such a deep level hitting hard in his gut. His pace was soon out of control, his instincts driving him more than anything else though he still intended on taking his time exploring every inch of her.

More than anything he wasted to savour this moment, make it last as long as possible for now that he had her at last he didn't want to let go. But the way she moved under him wasn't helping, the small noises and the way she arched uncontrollable up into him was throwing off his concentration. When she arched up again, muttering his name in a broken gasp, he finally lost that last of his self-control, his pace increasing drastically. He loosened his grip on her hands out of distraction; her grip instantly delving into his hair, clutching so tightly at the dark blue/black strands that her knuckles showed white.

She was losing her control quickly and she knew it, she could feel the heat rising within her the harder he went. It was true she had felt the call of desire before, just like anyone else her age, felt the tug of attraction and the heat of lust masquerading as love, but this was something different. Ever since he had come back, and even before that, something inside of her had been crying out for him and now that she had finally answered that call, it drove her crazy.

She was startled at the intensity of the rings of fire dancing and whirling within her core, and she thought that maybe she could ride the edge of these flames till the end of time. And then it came, roaring from a hidden place deep within her. An eruption of white heat that travelled through the arteries and sinews of her thighs, across her back, leaping with a cry from her throat and exploding from the top of her head.

He tensed, feeling the warmth rise in his gut, accented by the moment she cried out, tensing around him as she reached her climax. The tension only drove him further until all he saw was a world of white, his own climax hitting hard. His forehead buried in her shoulder, he went rigid, staying so until the moment passed. Was this what it felt like, to make the final connection with someone close? Was that what he had been missing, craving, for so long? Someone he could truly connect with.

He couldn't remember another time that he felt so relaxed, comfortable with anyone other than himself. He rolled onto his back, taking her with him, marvelling at just how good she felt in his arms. How well she fitted there as if she had been made for him and him alone.

XXXXXXXXXX

Ino lost count of how many times they explored the wonder that was their shared coupling, until she felt she knew his body almost as intimately as she knew her own. When at last they settled for sleep, through the window she could see the grey tinge to the horizon that heralded the approach of dawn. She lay nestled safely in the protective circle of the dark eyed male's arms.

She was almost asleep, and was sure Sasuke thought she was, when he murmured softly in her ear, "You know Yamanaka, I think I might love you."

It was in that moment that the blonde leaf kunoichi let her thoughts solidified, and she knew what it was that she must do in order to see her mission safely completed.

* * *

Please R and R I'd love to know what you thought.

Big love and inspiration

Lamanth


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any of its characters, merchandise, TV rights, ect… (I think you get the point.)

* * *

Summery 

Sometimes in life you have to see things right through to the bitter end, even if you wish you didn't. (Sasuke/Ino)

Like all of my work this is just something that happened to float through the empty void inside my head. Like it or hate it please R and R as honest opinions are always welcomed, as are random acts of worship.

"Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be prosecuted; persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished and persons attempting to find a plot in it will be shot."

Lamb: As always sorry for any bad spelling and if you feel the need to throw things at me please wait until I've hidden behind the sofa kay!

_Dedi:_ This fic is dedicated to **Yoruichi 'Ino'**

M**use: **On with the fic!

* * *

_Nothing's right I'm torn,  
I'm all out of faith,  
This is how I feel,  
I'm cold and I am shamed,  
Lying naked on the floor,  
Illusion never changed,  
Into something real,  
I'm wide awake and I can see,  
The perfect sky is torn,_

* * *

**Start to Finish**

"Yamanaka, listen to me!" Sasuke roared as he pulled against the ropes than bound his hands to the headboard. They were chakra effused making them unnaturally strong and the knots, which Ino had tied, were complex and would be near impossible to undo even under normal circumstances. "This is no time to split up!"

"Yes, it is," Ino said, carefully strapping the weapons pouch to her leg "Before you make the wrong decision."

"Wrong decision? You mean like the one I made last night?" The moment the words were out he wished he could take them back, he hadn't meant that but there was no way for him to back down. Sasuke had seen the way that tension had rolled through Ino, the way she was suddenly holding herself so stiffly, and knew he couldn't have hurt her more if he'd had physically assaulted her.

"I mean," And her voice was steady, almost unnaturally calm, betraying nothing of what she felt. "Trying to take the scroll."

"OK, you want to leave? Go ahead. But don't pretend it's to try and save me." Sasuke yelled and struggled ineffectually against his bonds, feeling the rope bite into his wrists and ankles. "You're afraid you might not be able to go through with it. Afraid of letting your guard down, of letting anyone in."

And she had ever reason to be afraid. What had transpired between them only hours ago went far beyond sex and physically satisfaction, it was something deep and dark and so intensely privet that to even speak of it almost felt wrong. She had opened up to him completely; he had seen her soul naked and exposed, utterly vulnerable before him. And with one hurtful, unplanned comment he had just thrown that rare gift back in her face.

"No Sasuke, I'm not leaving because I couldn't kill you." And though her voice was still level, there was no way for Ino to disguise the pain that flickered through her extraordinary eyes. "I'm leaving because I could."

Sucking in her breath sharply the Leaf kunoichi walked swiftly across the room and picking up a discarded scarf stuffed it into Sasuke's mouth to act as a crud form of gag. Any other female would have bent and kissed him before leaving the room, but not her. And even as his mind rebelled at what she had done, at the way she had been able to see his intentions so clearly, he could not help but feel slightly proud of her. Proud, that even after everything that had happened between them she refused to let her judgement become clouded.

XXXXXXXXXX

It had been almost an hour since Ino had slipped into the mind of one of the many hired thugs that were keeping century duty around the temple. It had taken that long for her to regain enough of her energy to stand a chance of taking on the two dozen guards. That was the problem with using the Shintenshin no Jutsu while keeping control of ones own body, the drain on chakra had to be seen to be believed. Though that was one good thing she had learned in her observations, not one of the twenty-four men was a trained shinobi, which meant she would not have to worry about counteracting Jutsu.

But ninja or not, the blonde dared not wait any longer she had to get that scroll and destroy it before the window of opportunity was slammed shut on her fingers.

And before Sasuke broke free, as she knew he eventually would, and followed her here.

But thinking of the Uchiha gave her an idea of how she would be able to take out some of the guards before getting within range to their weapons or fists. The Uchiha clan had all possessed an affinity with the eliminate of fire, possibly it was in some way connected to the Sharingan since Kakashi also used several fire techniques. Ino was more at home with the eliminates of water and lighting, the later of which both Kakashi and Sasuke also used. But the thing was since training with one under the eye of the other Ino had learned one or two of the fire based Jutsu of her own. One of which would be perfect for this situation.

Shifting position slightly so that more of the guards entered her field of vision, Ino offered up a small prayer to Kami-sama before moving her hands through the required seals with practised ease. Feeling the power pulse through her body, the blue-eyed mind walked softly murmured the name, "Fire Style: Phoenix strike jutsu."

Eight blazing balls of flame appeared in mid air and headed right for the patrolling men who screamed and yelled and shoved one another in an attempt to get out of the paths of the missiles. Four men where hit, the fire ravishing their clothes and in their attempts to douse the flames set light to another two. It was a horrific way to die but Ino refused to let her self think of that. Later she would grieve for the lives she had been forced to take but at that moment she was nothing more than a kunoichi of The Hidden Leaf Village.

Cold, calculating and ruthless.

And with that thought echoing in her mind Ino rose from her hiding place and dove into the melee of struggling, screaming bodies.

Ten minuets later and she was gasping for breath inside the temple its self. She had killed another five, which took the total up to eleven, but while it was true that she was far better trained they had numbers on their side and within the ruin she had little room to manoeuvre. One good thing was that the men seemed to have no idea how to fight; they were coming at her in ones and twos, instead of attaching on mass in which case the whole thing would been over in seconds.

A redhead charged, but telegraphed the move so all that Ino had to do was side step. The back of her fist caught him a cracking blow on the side of his head as he past her, and then kicked him in the ass so that he hit the temple wall with bone crunching force. From the corner of her eye she spotted the next attach, with a graceful martial-arts jump she had learned from Rock Lee, she delivered a perfectly placed kick to the man's leering mouth. He dropped like a sack of rice, spitting up teeth like undigested corn, as blood streaked down his chin onto his chest in colourful ribbons.

Thirteen down just eleven to go, Ino thought as she slashed open the throat of the next to approach her, but it was at that moment that the remained of the group seemed to rethink their stratagem and suddenly all of them advanced on mass. _Shit!_ was the only thought that made it though the blonde's adrenaline soaked brain as she caught one man, a blond like herself, full in the face with a straight right. With one foot she caught a second in the gut while the kunai she had been holding buried its self in the neck of a third.

But it was only a matter of time before the remainder swarmed her, and had her pinned like a dead butterfly in a collector's book. They held her down tightly, spread-eagled and took turns copping obnoxious feels, until the blond whose teeth Ino had knocked down his throat pushed his way through the group.

"Not so tough now are you, you little slut?" He sneered down at her. Dirty blond hair falling round his face as he openly stared, not bothering to hide the way he was eyeing up her lithe yet voluptuous figure.

Ino glared up at him, rage flashing in eyes that showed no hint of fear, and played the only card she had left. "You gutless shit, afraid to take on a girl by yourself? Have to have your associates hold her down for you?"

His nostrils flared as he leaned over Ino and slapped her hard around the face. It sounded like an explosion, rigging off of the cold stone walls of the former place of worship and her head eruption in pain. Bright multi-coloured stars flashed behind her eyes as her head was slammed against the floor. "I'm about to except your apology slut."

Spitting blood into his face Ino snarled, "Stop calling me that!"

He pulled back one sinewy arm to hit her again, but before he could strike a pale hand seized his wrist in a vice like grip and dragged him round. There was nothing of the typical elegant shinobi way in Sasuke's action; his eyes were blazing the colour of fresh blood as he smashed his forehead into the face of the blond. The sound of the man's skull cracking echoed around the ruin, he dropped like a stone and Sasuke turned to face the remaining men, the blood of their former leader coated his headband.

It was at that point that, from the point of view of the remaining thieves, that all hell broke lose. Sasuke was like something possessed, striking, spinning, and striking again and again, kicks knocking battered thieves in all directions. Suddenly finding herself free, Ino leapt to her feet, ignoring the protests of her body as she re-entered the fray. A sallow skinned male was making for Sasuke's back a wicked blade held in one hand and a vicious smile twisting his face.

Ino swung her fist at his face, and smirked when it collided with a meaty crunch and had him down on his knees. Her kick had the knife flying in a silvery arch from his hand and as she spun the blonde caught the blade and with one sharp trust put the male down for good. Less than two minuets later and the only people left breathing were Ino and Sasuke, everyone else was either dead or had fled the carnage.

Weariness and fatigue dragged at the blue-eyed young woman, the adrenaline that had surged through her system was starting to disperse and with a shudder of revolution Ino realised what would probably have happened to her if Sasuke had not arrived. She offered him a watery smile as he looked over at her, funny she would never have pegged him as the night in shining armour type. There was something dark and unreadable in his eyes, which were slowly returning to their normal onyx hue, that she didn't understand, but only intensified as he closed the space between them.

The next thing Ino knew Sasuke had his arms wrapped tightly around her, holding her as close to him as he could, while his mouth devoured her own. There was a desperate frantic need to the kiss, a hungry intensity that she had never felt before and she wondered just how much of the dirty blond haired male's threat the Uchiha had heard. She could feel herself losing her grip on reality, getting swept along on a tidal wave of emotion, but she had a job to do and it wasn't finished.

Reluctantly Ino pulled away from Sasuke and headed to the back of the temple, and the box in which the scroll was hidden. Only to freeze when the Uchiha blocked her path and fear flowed like ice water through her veins when Sasuke carefully lifted the roll of parchment from its hiding place.

XXXXXXXXXX

"I'm taking it with me." His voice was low and even, and so soft that his words were almost lost in the acoustics of the ruin, and that fact only scared Ino further. The scroll was held firmly in his left hand while the fingers of his right hand twitched spasmodically, a sure indication of the nervous tension that filled him.

"I won't let you." Ino whispered, moving so that her trembling, fatigue weakened body stood between Sasuke and the highly arched temple doorway.

"So it's come to this, has it? Well, you do have authorisation to kill me. Better do it then, cus if you think standing in front of me is gonna be enough…." The end of the sentence trailed off as his hand struck her hard around the face, and still exhausted from the resent fight Ino could do nothing but fight the nausea as she was flung backwards.

All the breath was pushed sharply from her lungs when her back slammed against a half-fallen pillar. Ino felt her ribs cry out in pain as white-hot fire seared its way through her flesh.

"You don't have it in you to stop me. You see, all your beliefs... all your ideals, they're not real. I am. And you love me; you've always loved me." Ino would never have believed it if she had not heard it for herself; the note of pleading that filled his voice. "You think you're strong, but you'll never choose them over me."

Ino could only shake her head while pain assaulted even nerve and sinew of her bruised and battered body. Slowly inch by gruelling inch, she dragged her self to her feet and though she swayed slightly, the blonde once more placed her body so that she was blocking Sasuke from the exit. She had been given her orders and she would carry them out no matter what the cost, it didn't matter how much pain and suffering it would cause her. Ino had been set a task and she would see it through to the bitter end for that was her ninja way.

"Yamanaka! Don't you understand what we could do with this? We wouldn't have lost them; we could be with them all again…" Sasuke continued expounding wildly, waving his hands to emphasise his meaning the scroll still held tightly in his left hand. But Ino had stopped listening; she could see the savage reckless light burning in his eyes and felt her heart cracking in two.

All of her life she had been choosing between doing what she wanted to do and what she had to do. The scroll was offering a seemingly impossible gift, to bring the dead to life, not just imitations as those raised by Orochimaru had been, but the true person heart and soul once more walking the earth. But still a human sacrifice was required for the jutsu to work, because as with everything it was all about balance. The life of a stranger for that of her father or Asuma-sensei, was it worth it? Was one life less valuable than another? No, it wasn't.

And though tempting though it was, though there had been times when Ino had felt that there was nothing she wouldn't do, no price she wouldn't pay, to see her sensei one more time. Or feel her fathers arms wrapped around her as pride lit up his face. Or to have the chance to meet her mother, the woman who had died bringing her into this world. Ino knew that she would not be able to face any of them if she did what Sasuke was suggesting.

"Now move!" Sasuke screamed the vivid scarlet of the Sharingan flaming in his eyes as his self-control began to slip.

"No." Ino breathed, not thinking about what would happen next her whole being simply focusing on the task of remaining conscious.

"Move, please!" And again Ino thought that there was something of a plea in his tone, or maybe she had just lost too much blood and was just hearing what she wanted to.

Too tired for words the blonde just shook her head and Sasuke felt a strange mix of rage and terror claw at his insides. Why couldn't she just move? Why did she have to be so stubborn? Why couldn't she just back down? The situation was a hopeless one, she was almost on the point of collapse and even as he watched her Ino swayed slightly on the spot. There was no way that she could stop him, weakened as she was, she was no match for him.

He took one step towards her and saw how Ino had to force her eyes to focus on him. It would be easy one swift move and it would all be over, except that he would have the scroll. He would be able to bring her back, he would be able to bring them all back and then she would see that he had been right. Then they could all be happy and the two of them could be together.

"Fine." Sasuke whispered and the scroll clenched tightly in his hand he lunged at the broken blonde.

* * *

(A/N – Cliff-hanger because I'm a bitch and I can.)

Please R and R I'd love to know what you thought.

Big love and inspiration

Lamanth


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any of its characters, merchandise, TV rights, ect… (I think you get the point.)

* * *

Summery 

Sometimes in life you have to see things right through to the bitter end, even if you wish you didn't. (Sasuke/Ino)

Like all of my work this is just something that happened to float through the empty void inside my head. Like it or hate it please R and R as honest opinions are always welcomed, as are random acts of worship.

Lamb: As always sorry for any bad spelling and if you feel the need to throw things at me please wait until I've hidden behind the sofa kay!

M**use: **On with the fic!

* * *

_I am a dreamer but when I wake,  
You can't break my spirit, it's my dreams you take,  
And as you move on, remember me,  
Remember us and all we used to be,  
I've seen you cry, I've seen you smile,  
I've watched you sleeping for a while,_

* * *

**Start to Finish**

Yamanaka Ino, such a beautiful thing, yet cursed with so many flaws, he mused. So vain and arrogant and yet, so focused and determined. She was a cacophony of contradictions all merged into one very luscious body, and yet she seemed to remain totally unaware of how attractive she was. They said the beauty without flaw was not true beauty, and Sasuke wondered absently if anyone had ever bothered to tell her that. Would it have made a difference if they had?

If she hadn't lived most of her life trying to attain perfection, a state that did not truly exists, would they still be standing in this place? If the girl she had been all those years ago had been the woman that she was now would he still have left? Pretty little Ino, a head so full of hopes and dreams, so intent on attracting his attention she hadn't seen that it would have been hers for the taking if only she had not chased after it so much.

The golden flower of Konoha, always reaching for something that was just beyond her grasp. But what sort of flower was she? No one had ever said. A buttercup, a common bloom but bright and strong just like she was. Or a yellow rose, sweet scented but with sharp thorns that ripped apart anyone who got too close. Had he got too close? Or had he moved past that point, moved beyond close so that she was now a part of him?

It was strange that it was only now, at the very end that everything became clear. All the things he wanted to say to her and all the things he wanted her to say to him. How stupid he had been letting all the opportunities he'd had slip past, like water that drained through his finger even as he tried to hold onto it. He had wasted so much time and now that when only seconds remained he realised that was he needed was an infinity to communicate all that was in his heart.

That she had touched his heart and his soul, the only parts of him that he had thought he had kept hidden from all the pain the world had to offer. That he thought she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, whether her face was wreathed in smiles or puffy and red from the tears she had shed. That he would have spent his life with her, been the father of her child and that he didn't think he could now live without her in his life.

But mostly that he would have got down on bended knee and beard his soul to her if she had asked him to. That he would have done anything and everything in his power to make her happy because she meant that much to him. Because most of all he loved her.

Sasuke signed softly as he looked into her terrified face. Even in the grip of fear she was still beautiful, but she always had been to him. Always had been and always would be. She had a strange golden fairness that he had never seen before in any living thing. It reminded him of the first magic warmth of the spring sunshine, that moment when it was clear that the harsh cold of winter had past. He loved the warmth she had.

"My Ino-chan…." It was more of a sigh than anything else, and ever as the sound echoed in her ears Ino realised it was the first time he had called her by her given name.

The sound that escaped Ino's lips was a cross between a gasp and a cry. The hot stickiness of blood coated her hands and the heat of salty tears ran in rivers over her cheeks. The moment stretched out before her, dragging out the seconds like a piece of elastic on the point of snapping. His breath was soft against her skin, fluttering against her cheeks like the wings of so many butterflies, his mouth so close that he might have been leaning in to kiss her goodbye.

Voices inside her head screamed out in fear and pain even as she forced herself to watch. To watch as his eyes slowly changed from crimson to black and then how the light in those same eyes dimmed and faded, like a candle guttering in the wind before being blown out. The smile, so like those she remembered from her childhood, formed on his lips as his hand reached out to stroke her face. His fingers were a hairs breath from her skin when his arm went limp and he slumped to the ground.

Forth lumbar down and a little to the left, the abdominal aorta. The sweet spot as many ANBU Black OPS refereed to it, death was almost instantaneous.

She wanted to brake down, to throw herself down on the ground, cling to his body and sob her heart out, but she couldn't. There was so much that she wanted to do, to scream until the back of her throat ripped and her mouth was filled the sharp copper taste of her own blood. She wanted the pain she had felt only moments ago, the agony that had torn at her muscles but which had faded in comparison to the pain the gnawed at her heart.

But more than anything she wanted to wake up from the nightmare and find herself safe and warn wrapped in the comforting embrace of his arms.

With a trembling hand Ino reached down and picked up the scroll from where it had fallen. So much death over such a little thing, it was hard to believe. It was just a roll of old parchment, the worst it could do was give her a paper cut. And yet because of this one small thing she had taken the life of the only man she knew she would ever have the ability to love. She position it carefully on the stone alter and fighting the pain and self-loathing that threatened to overwhelm her forced her hands to perform the required seals and after mumbling the name of the Jutsu watched as the parchment crumbled to ashes.

Next she turned her attention to the bodies of the hired thieves, leaving them here to rot was one possibility but the scent of blood would sooner or later attract wild animals. Even after what they had done and tried to do Ino disliked the idea of leaving them for meat, she cared too much for the wildlife to left them feed of such rancid flesh. Gathering her strength the blonde pulled and tugged at the mangled remains, heaving them until they where piled together in the centre of the temple.

She repeated the seals she had performed earlier and watched as the mound of bodies was engulfed in bright dancing flames. It looked like some barbaric human sacrifice to a heathen god, Ino thought, as the acrid stench of burning flesh assaulted her senses. It was over in minutes, though the foul smell still hung in the air. That was the thing about fire created by jutsu it would burn as hot and fast as the ninja who crated it could make it, even hot enough to turn bones to dust.

She hated doing it but drew the process out as long as she could for when it was done Ino was forced to turn once more to Sasuke's body.

The blonde mind walker was torn. She could not take his corpse with her back to Konoha but at the same time the idea of reducing his remains to a pile of ashes turned her stomach and made bile rise in her throat. Ino glanced around the dilapidated former house of worship, looking for any clue as to what she should do and her eyes alighted on the alter on which the scroll had rested. All around it lay pieces of stone and bits of roof that had fallen. It would be heard and laborious work but it seemed the right thing to do, if anything in that place could be described as _right_.

Once had been bad enough, the soft sound like the whisper of silk, as she had plunged the sharp blade directly into his heart had echoed in her ears. The heat of his blood as it flowed over her hand, so warm like liquid fire had left Ino frozen and chilled to the bone. She had killed Sasuke, but now he was lying on the hard unforgiving stone dull eyes staring unseeingly at the half-collapsed ceiling. Crouching down beside him, Ino placed her hand on his face and, with the easy of the medical trained ninja, closed his eyes while her mind screamed.

It was the part she hated the most. The moment that would replay over and over in her dreams for years to come. When his lids fell shut for that finale time, when it felt as if she were taking his life all over again. When she killed him for the second time.

Ino sang inside her head, nursery rhymes, snippets of half forgotten songs, anything she could think of to keep herself from thinking about what she was doing. To try and block out the fact that the body she was burying in the makeshift burial mound was that of Uchiha Sasuke. On and on she forced herself to keep going, finding stones the right size, fitting them into place like pieces of some horrific jigsaw.

Hands bloody and raw from contact with so much rough masonry she slotted the last stone into place and fought the urge to fall to her knees and weep. Her strength was all but spent, her chakra all but gone and Ino knew that should she falter, stop for even a moment she would not be able to make herself move once more. When she stopped it would all be over.

Stepping outside the blonde kunoichi was shocked to find that the sun was bleeding to death in the evening sky. Flooding the heavens with vivid patches of gold and crimson, some eventually darkening to a cool purple as the evening drew in. Birds returning to their nests were black arrowheads against the red backdrop and the mottled sky was like a child's colouring book, layers of colour splashed brilliantly one on top of the other. The long shadows of evening stretched out on the ground, seeming almost to reach out for her like the talons of some hideous monster.

The fading light turned the ruined walls of the once impressive temple from a time worn creamy grey to a warmly glowing rose-gold. And though she was almost on the point of collapse Ino knew that there was one more thing that she had to do. As it was anyone could have just strolled in and dismantled the resting place of the man she loved and that was a thought she just could not bear. Forcing her stiff and swollen finger to obey her commands, Ino moved though the complex series of symbols before pressing her palms to the ground and murmuring the name of the jutsu.

She could feel her strength being sapped from her body as her chakra, the little of it that was left, was drawn through her hands and into the earth beneath her fingers. For one long drawn out moment nothing seemed to happen and then from between two large stones that had once been the base of a tall pillar a green shoot appeared and began to rove over the stone. More questing plants quickly followed Honeysuckle, Ivy and Jasmine all roving over ruin, covering the entrance and pulling down more of the brick work. Until, due to Ino's helping hand, Mother Nature claimed the dilapidated temple as her own and stood guard over the body of the fallen shinobi who would forever remain safely entombed within its crumbled walls.

Ino felt that she should say something, but didn't know what. She had not prayed to Kami-sama since the death of her beloved Asuma-sensei, when he had been dying in her arms and all her skill have proved to not be enough. Then she had prayed, as she had never done before, swearing that she would do anything asked of her if only this one man might live.

At the time of her father's passing she had screamed and wailed at the sky, demanding answers that were never given to her. But by then she had been hardened to the fact that there was no higher power that she could turn to, that all she had in the world was herself. And she could not now prey to something she didn't believe in, even for Sasuke could not she force herself to do such a thing.

Stepping forward, she reached out and let her fingers caress the fragile blooms that filled the air with their heady perfume. With a trembling hand, Ino broke the small stem, sending the white Jasmine flowers into a dancing frenzy before for raising it so she could breath the sweet scent deep into her lungs.

Half-forgotten fragments memory filled her head. She remembered being very young and holding her father's hand as the stood before a neatly tended grave. Ino could hear her father's voice, strong and clear, yet with a slight tremble to it, which at the time she had not understood, but years later she had come to recognise as grief. Now she recited the poem to Sasuke just as all those years ago her father had done for her mother.

"The tears I feel today, I'll wait to shed tomorrow. Though I'll not sleep this night, nor find relief from sorrow. My eyes must keep their sight; I dare not be tear blinded. I must be free to talk, not choked with grief, clear minded. My mouth can not betray the anguish that I know. Yes, I'll keep my tears till later, but my grief will never go."

* * *

Please R and R I'd love to know what you thought.

Big love and inspiration

Lamanth


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto or any of its characters, merchandise, TV rights, ect… (I think you get the point.)

* * *

Summery 

Sometimes in life you have to see things right through to the bitter end, even if you wish you didn't. (Sasuke/Ino)

Like all of my work this is just something that happened to float through the empty void inside my head. Like it or hate it please R and R as honest opinions are always welcomed, as are random acts of worship.

Lamb: As always sorry for any bad spelling and if you feel the need to throw things at me please wait until I've hidden behind the sofa kay!

M**use: **On with the fic!

* * *

_It's a fucking waste,  
Teenage taste of me,  
But if daddy cries,  
You say goodnight and I'll come,  
If I could change,  
And keep away the rain...  
Well the sun would shine every night and I'll come...  
Meet you there someday,_

* * *

**Start to Finish**

One of the gate guards was already speeding back from the Hokage tower, said Hokage in tow, by the time Ino had rounded the last bend on the main road into Konoha. The message had come that the blonde kunoichi was back, but that only she was back at which point Naruto had already been on his way out of his office and heading for the main gate. The mind walker had just made it to the gate when the frantic blond village leader reached her, his hands instantly went to her shoulders as he began to shake her demanding to know what had happened and why Sasuke was not with her.

"Naruto!" The scream echoed through Ino's throbbing skull and she was vaguely aware that someone was pulling Naruto off of her. "Remember you're Hokage, you can't act like this. And it's clear Yamanaka isn't in any fit state to be treated like this."

Ino didn't hear the surly response that the male in question gave Lady Tsunade, for it was she who had halted Naruto mid demanded question. Alerted to the fact that something was wrong by the that way her young successor had bolted through the Hokage tower, she had followed out of natural curiosity and also because it gave her a good reason to get out of doing more dull paperwork.

"I'm fine." Ino said quietly, but with enough force to stop the argument that was beginning between the two other blondes. "Really. I'm fine, just tired."

"If you're so fine then –" He started, the accusation blazing brightly in electric blue eyes.

"Shut up!" The amber-eyed woman easily silenced the sixth with the barked out order. "Have you no brains at all in that skull of yours? Yamanaka, come with us to the Hokage tower and make your report there since I hardly think this is a discussion to be having in the middle of the damn street."

"H… hai." The confirmation was more of a sigh than a word as Ino tried to prevent herself from swaying on the spot.

The two one time members of the Rookie Nine followed the legendary Sannin as she turned on her heal and stalked back in the direction she had come. Even though she had retired, Tsunade still wore the mantle of power so lightly, something that Naruto envied at times. Though at others it he was grateful that she could keep a clear head when he was on the point of loosing control, such as now. He was too close to Sasuke to be able to distance himself and had immediately jumped on the blonde, demanding answers from her.

His train of thought was broken when Ino stumbled and almost lost her footing, something that was highly unusual in any shinobi and definitely surprising for the Ino that he knew. Instinctively he put an arm around her to steady her and as she gratefully leaned her weight against him and for the first time since he had come tearing down Konoha's main road looked at her properly. The girl was a mess.

Normally sleek silver blonde hair was now a mass of matted rats tails, her arms and legs were covered with cuts and scraps. There were rips in the dark purple fabric of her clothing and dirt and blood was caked to her skin and under her fingernails, which were torn and broken. There were bruises around her wrists and one had formed on her face covering her left cheek and eye. Her eyes, they appeared sunken in her face, dull and empty and dark circles like sooty thumbprints surrounded them as if she hadn't slept for days.

Which in fact she hadn't.

XXXXXXXXXX

Ino looked from the bloodstained headband that lay on the desk to the distraught face of Uzumaki Naruto and back down again and steeled herself to do something she had never thought she would. Lie to her Hokage.

"The mission was a success," Was that first thing she said, getting the fact out the way as quickly as possible so that she could tell the blond what it was he really wanted to know. "The scroll has been destroyed."

"And Sasuke?" His voice was so quite as to be almost inaudible; his eyes fixed on the headband of his best friend while his fingers toyed with the edge of the dark blue fabric.

Naruto had felt the pain of Sasuke's betrayal more deeply than anyone else had and though he had tried not to show it, it had been clear that he had blamed himself for not being able to bring his friend home. Guilt had set a fire deep within him; it was what had motivated him to push himself so hard. Determined to become strong enough to make up for all the times he had failed. To finally become strong enough to bring his friend home no matter what.

And then all these years later, back the Uchiha had come. And though Naruto had tried to be cautious, tried to keep himself from trusting too easily in his old team-mate he had not been able to hide how happy he was that the wanderer had returned to Konoha. And more over that he had returned of his own freewill, not been sent to spy or as the start of an invasion, but had come home because it was what he wanted. Ino had seen with her own eyes the joy that had filled her friend and could not, would not, take that away from him.

"He… He protected me." Without realising it the blonde rapped her arms tightly around her torso, hugging her body protectively for the little comfort it would give her. "I was stupid and got into a situation I couldn't control and if it hadn't of been for Sasuke I'd be dead… or worse."

There was no need for Ino to explain what would have been worse than death, the look of mingled rage and disgust on Naruto's face and Tsunade's sharp intake of breath were more than enough to confirm they knew what she was talking about. Rape was an occupational hazard for a kunoichi, but knowing that didn't make being confronted with the reality that it had almost happened any easier to deal with. Not for Ino. Not for anyone.

It was on of the reasons the ratio of male to female ninja was so high. It was not easy to live every day with the prospect of pain and death, but it became a lot harder when the fear of sexual assault was also factored in. Kunoichi were strong and tough, but first and foremost they were just young woman, and many woman could not cope with the risks that came with the ninja lifestyle. Rape was the only crime Ino knew of where people could blame the victim. Someone sticks a knife in your face and demands money, they're the one in the wrong but if they demand sex all the rules change.

Step by painful step the blonde kunoichi took them through the mission starting with the small group they had encountered on the first night and ending with her forty-six straight hour return journey to Konoha. Leaving out only what had transpired between herself and Sasuke on the last night. She told them of how Sasuke and she had uncovered the information about the scrolls whereabouts about how too that they had also unwittingly discovered what said scroll pertained to. Ino gave an edited version of the ambush on the temple making sound as if they had separated to attack from different angles rather than that she was there on her own.

And most traumatic of all, the blonde had spoken of how she had been grabbed by a group of the thieves and how the confines of the building had hampered her ability to evade them. She said how they had held her down, the things they had said and the stench of their rancid breath in her face. And then finally of how Sasuke had come to her rescue, saving her and effectively giving his life so that they might complete their mission.

She altered the manner of his death, using the lie to comfort her friend about the death of his former team-mate. What had happened could not be changed and there was nothing to be gained by telling them what she had done, that it was her hand that had spilled the blood of the last Uchiha. It was something that she would have to live with till the end of her days but there was no reason why others should be made to suffer as well.

Let Naruto have the comfort, small though it might be, of thinking his friend died the hero the blond male had always wanted to believe that he could be.

XXXXXXXXXX

He had wanted to stay with her, to talk about what had happened or even to just sit in silence the way that they used to. But Ino had been insistent she still had to go through a full medical, and it was pointless for the Hokage to wait around just to walk her home. Naruto had know that arguing about it would be a waist of time, calling him 'Hokage' was, had always been, Ino's way of reminding him that he had far more important things to worry about that her.

And she was right… up to a point. He still had a stack of paperwork to get through before he could go home to his pregnant wife. His wife, mother of his unborn children and the love of his life. And how he loved Hinata, there weren't words to describe what he felt for her, that his world had shifted around her and that she was the very heart and soul of him. The opal-eyed woman was the rock in his ever changing, ever hectic life; her love was the thing that kept him sane.

Through aside the file he had been staring at unseeingly for the past quarter of an hour, not caring that it slid across the desk and off of the edge. He's was already going through the door as it landed on the floor, sheets of paper spilling out in all directions. He didn't want to talk to anyone and, seeing the look on his face, those he passed had the presence of mind to turn their heads away. Anything they needed their Hokage for could wait until the following day.

Hinata would offer him comfort and support in this time of loss, would hold him close and, as always, give him unconditional love. But it wasn't what he needed, not then at that moment. What he needed was Ino. The friend, who had become his lover, then gone back to being just his friend. The girl who he could talk with all night until the sun rose or just sit in silence with for hours on end. Who would slap him one minuet and hug him the next. The Yamanaka who had got into his head, seen what was inside of him, and hadn't run in fear but matched the demon's smirk with one of her own.

The cool evening air felt good on Naruto's face as he exited the tower and started walking. From, that was the most important factor in any mindless escape. You were always running from. To could look after its self. But memories were tricky things to get away from, just when you though you'd lost them you found yourself running smack bang right into them.

Hinata would try, but she didn't know, couldn't know, what he was going through. It Ino who understood what the losing Sasuke meant to him because it was tarring her apart just the same. It was as if things were at last coming full circle, they had lost the Uchiha all over again and this time he knew that it was for good. This time there was no chance that he would come back.

Naruto wasn't surprised to find that, when he came to a stop, he was standing in the shadow of the Hokage monument. Blue eyes automatically found the forth carved face, the one so like his own and yet somehow still different. But the unmoving stone had no comfort that it could offer him. The slight smile, and calm gave that watched over Konohagakure could give him nothing. No fatherly advice, no consoling words, no reassurances that things would get better with time.

Ino had once told him that she had never looked to her father for comfort after Sasuke left. She had explained that Inoichi as a father he would try to offer her whatever support he could, but as a Konoha shinobi he simply could not comprehend why someone would morn the loss of a traitor. Naruto had wondered if the might have been part of the reason why he and Ino had bonded so easily, that in the start they didn't really have anyone else who would understand.

But this time that was no Ino to offer him so much as a shred of comfort, this time he didn't think Ino even had it in her to console herself.

XXXXXXXXXX

It was full dark by the time Tsunade had reluctantly allowed Ino to retune home, though the Sannin had made it clear that she would be happier if the blonde stayed in hospital. Chakra depletion, extreme fatigue as well as the physical damage that had been done. Not to mention the extreme emotional stress she was under. The Sannin had seen the anguish that had filled the younger kunoichi's face as she had told of the burial that she had given the Uchiha. One that would honour any clan heir.

Yes she would have been happier to have the mind walker under observation, but knew that trying to force the issue would prove useless. Tsunade was wise enough to know that Ino would just sneak out if she wasn't released and if she tried to climb out of the window in her current state she would probable end up with a broken neck. It was true what the said about medics making the worst patients.

She wasn't thinking clearly and the Yamanaka was through the front door and half way up the staircase of the house she had shared with Sasuke before she realised where it was she had gone. In the morning people would go looking for her in her home, the apartment above the flower shop, the place where she had grown up. But it was no longer the place she thought of as her home.

It wasn't to her room she went to but to his. Dropping her pack down just inside the door, Ino crossed the floor and crawled onto the bed buying her head in the pillow and breathing in deeply the scent of Uchiha Sasuke. And only then, when her mission was truly completed did she release the hold she had on her emotions. When her reports had been made. When she had been medically cleared, or near enough. When she had seen the sorrow in Naruto's eyes and the compassion in Tsunade's. Only when she was safe behind the locked doors did Ino allow herself to give vent to the grief and loneliness that filled her.

Her sobs convalesce and wrack her slender body. Tears slid thick and fast over her sculpted cheek bones and round the curve of her jaw, causing pale gold strands to stick and cling to her damp skin. Her cries were harsh and they stretch and tore at the back of her throat, the pain in her chest was tight and burning as her heart broke over him for the second time. Her screams of gut wrenching agony were swallowed by the night-time air, they echoed off of the walls of the room but the outside world was left oblivious to her anguish. Ino pulled the pillow, filled with his scent as close as she could, hugging it tightly to her body as she rocked back and forth, fighting against the pain of her very soul.

* * *

Please R and R I'd love to know what you thought.

Big love and inspiration

Lamanth


End file.
